Twenty-fifth annual report, 1889 / Newcastle-upon-Tyne City Lunatic Asylum.

  • Newcastle-upon-Tyne City Lunatic Asylum.
Date:
1890
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Twenty-fifth annual report, 1889 / Newcastle-upon-Tyne City Lunatic Asylum. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    performances are not given here, other entertainments of an associated character should be encouraged. We are glad to see that cricket is promoted, and that there are occasional pic-nics, though these are of necessity limited to a small proportion of patients, who are taken to Tynemouth and Newbiggin. As to employment, 45 men work on the land, 10 in the shops; and in the laundry 26 women assist, 28 in the needleroom, and about a score in the offices. We should be glad to hear of better employment of some of the 47 men and 50 women who can only now be described as ward helpers. The staff of ordinary day attendants is 1 to 11 patients on the male side, 1 to 13 in the women’s department or thereabouts, and may perhaps be con¬ sidered sufficient, A piano in the nurses’ sitting room would probably be very acceptable. Attendants on the insane need relaxation, and on their contentment the welfare of the patients in their charge greatly depends. One patient only is on leave to-day, but she will this day be discharged. Statutory allowances are not made here to patients on leave, which is to be regretted, as these allowances often assist a trial and recovery. We also notice that there is no Asylum Charity Fund here for the relief of the discharged on their return to a struggle for a livelihood. The attendance of patients at Divine Service last Sunday was 111 and 127 from the male and female divisions respectively. A priest visits the Roman Catholics. We have examined the case books, which are very fairly kept, but we hope that with better nursing the number of bed-sores may be further diminished. CHARLES PALMER PHILLIPS, ( Commissioners REGINALD SOUTHEY, j in Lunacy.