Difference between revisions of "Portal:Featured Article Of The Week"

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|Title= Middletown State Hospital
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|Title= Norristown State Hospital
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|Body= This institution was originally founded in pursuance of an act of the legislature passed April 28, 1870, establishing at Middletown, in Orange county, a state lunatic asylum for "the care and treatment of the insane and the inebriate upon the principles of medicine known as homœopathic." The movement, however, which led to the ultimate establishment of the hospital had its inception in the address of John Stanton Gould before the State Homœopathic Medical Society at its session in Albany in February, 1866. The subject of the orator's discourse was "The Relation of Insanity to Bodily Disease," and in the course of his remarks attention was called to the necessity of a new state asylum for lunatic's in the southern tier counties of the state, and claimed as a matter of justice that when organized the institution should be placed under the homœopathic school of medicine.
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|Body= Norristown State Hospital received its first patient, a woman, on July 12, 1880 under the supervision of Dr. Robert H. Chase and Dr. Alice Bennett. Two more women arrived on July 13th followed by the first two men on July 17th. Very soon thereafter groups of individuals were admitted from other state hospitals and county almshouses. By September 30, 1880, there were 295 men and 251 women receiving inpatient care and treatment.
  
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This seems to have been the crystallizing point of the earnest desire of the homœopathic profession throughout the state, for at the next meeting of the state society in February, 1867, a resolution was offered by Dr. Paine of Albany to the effect that "Whereas, a bill authorizing the erection of a new lunatic asylum is now pending before the legislature," therefore a committee should be appointed to prepare a memorial asking "for such action as shall place said institution under the care of the homœopathic school."
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Norristown State Hospital was the first of the Pennsylvania state hospitals to construct its buildings deviating slightly from the "Kirkbride Plan", best known as "Transitional Plan". Instead of constructing a single monolithic building, the individual patient wards were separated and free-standing. These building were connected with a series of underground tunnels, including a central tunnel which stretches across the property. Norristown still maintains the schematics of Kirkbride's original plan, with it separation of male and female departments, as well as leveling the acuity of patients by ward.
  
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But notwithstanding the laudable efforts of the advocates of the enterprise and their apparent zeal for its consummation, nothing was accomplished until some years afterward. In the meantime, however, Dr. Hilon Doty had come forward with a proposition to turn over his private asylum, "Margarettsville Retreat for the Insane," to a board of trustees or managers of an incorporated institution under homœopathic control, and while an act of incorporation was secured in 1869 through the influence of the state medical society, nothing was done until December of that year, when Dr. George E. Foote of Middletown presented to the homœopathic profession a plan to establish an insane asylum, founded by subscription and endowment, and organized as a close corporation.  [[Middletown State Hospital|Click here for more...]]
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There was a tremendous emphasis during the early period on a 'humane' approach to psychiatric treatment ("moral therapy") allowing the individual as much liberality as his/her condition would permit, which was common of the period. Several low-acuity wards were unlocked for periods of time, and grounds privileges was a common feature of daily life. Work assignments became a significant feature of a patient's daily routine, many focusing on the workings of the state farm. They were not limited to farm work, other occupational departments include: Administration, Bakery, Billiard room, Boiler room, Bric-a-brac shop, Brush shop, Butcher, Carpenter shop, Dispensary, Garden, Kitchen, Laundry, Machinists, Mattress shop, News-room, Out-door improvement, Painters, Plasterers, Plumbers, Printing office, Scroll saw shop, Shoemakers, Stables, Store-rooms, Tailors, Wards and dining rooms and Weavers. However, with the change in Pennsylvania State Law in the 1970's, hospital patients were no longer permitted to be involved in farm labor. Thereafter, the farmlands were employed by separates agencies of the city of Norristown, namely Norris-City and Norristown Farm Park.  [[Norristown State Hospital|Click here for more...]]
 
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Revision as of 09:43, 19 January 2020

Featured Article Of The Week

Norristown State Hospital


Norristown 17.jpg

Norristown State Hospital received its first patient, a woman, on July 12, 1880 under the supervision of Dr. Robert H. Chase and Dr. Alice Bennett. Two more women arrived on July 13th followed by the first two men on July 17th. Very soon thereafter groups of individuals were admitted from other state hospitals and county almshouses. By September 30, 1880, there were 295 men and 251 women receiving inpatient care and treatment.

Norristown State Hospital was the first of the Pennsylvania state hospitals to construct its buildings deviating slightly from the "Kirkbride Plan", best known as "Transitional Plan". Instead of constructing a single monolithic building, the individual patient wards were separated and free-standing. These building were connected with a series of underground tunnels, including a central tunnel which stretches across the property. Norristown still maintains the schematics of Kirkbride's original plan, with it separation of male and female departments, as well as leveling the acuity of patients by ward.

There was a tremendous emphasis during the early period on a 'humane' approach to psychiatric treatment ("moral therapy") allowing the individual as much liberality as his/her condition would permit, which was common of the period. Several low-acuity wards were unlocked for periods of time, and grounds privileges was a common feature of daily life. Work assignments became a significant feature of a patient's daily routine, many focusing on the workings of the state farm. They were not limited to farm work, other occupational departments include: Administration, Bakery, Billiard room, Boiler room, Bric-a-brac shop, Brush shop, Butcher, Carpenter shop, Dispensary, Garden, Kitchen, Laundry, Machinists, Mattress shop, News-room, Out-door improvement, Painters, Plasterers, Plumbers, Printing office, Scroll saw shop, Shoemakers, Stables, Store-rooms, Tailors, Wards and dining rooms and Weavers. However, with the change in Pennsylvania State Law in the 1970's, hospital patients were no longer permitted to be involved in farm labor. Thereafter, the farmlands were employed by separates agencies of the city of Norristown, namely Norris-City and Norristown Farm Park. Click here for more...

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