HALF-WAY HOUSES

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 240, 4 July 1919, Page 6

HALF-WAY HOUSES

HELP FOR TUB MENTALLY AFFLICTED. When in Christchureh recently, the Hon. G. AV. Russeil anuouiiced that it had been decided to provide an establishment at Hornby, separate from ■ the Sunnysido Mental llospitul, where patients in their lucid periods, could obtain tho refinements they had wen accustomed to in their own homes V.or to .becoming mentally .afflicted. J>. L G. Levinge, for many years m«lical supeiiiitendent of the Sunnysiue Mental Hospital, stated ..in Christnhurch that the proposed «* institution seemed to him to be a corollary to tho half-way house idea ns applied to the treatment of incipient insanity, which' ho had so persistently advocated for many years, but which, though frequently promised, had never to this day been carried out in the manner in which he intended, and in which it had been promised it should' be carried out. These institutions, built at great cost, for the treatment of the incipient insane, had become dumping-grounds to relieve the overcrowded mental hospitals of ordinal , } patients, whereas the intention was that they were to be absolutely distinct from and freo from the taint of tho ordinary, mental hospital. As a consequence, the treatment, in these, special institutions of incipient cases had been too much mixed up with the treatment of the ordinary enses of insanity. "As far as I understand the announcement recently made by the Minister," Dr. Levinge continued, "tho new estab-, lishment • is intended for convalescent I'-ases, of (arrested recovery; and if ii ia confined to such cases and not need to relievo the overcrowding at the general mental hospitals—except in so far ns the transfer of convalescent cases will relieve overcrowding—then I think it is an exceedingly good and progressiva step. '1 havo always regarded change, such as could be got by tho transfer of patients from one institution to another, ns most salutary treatment, and I strongly recommended it in my reports to the Government years ago, but it wa-i never, carried ont. The danger about proposals'similar to the one referred In is that politicians use them for tho purpose of tickling the public ear. iti.d in order to convey the impression that they are doing something quite distinct atiu apart from relieving tho overciwding in the existing mental hospitals. The public is likely to be disappointed, as the expectations of ben*hcinl results may not be fully realised. I trust that as regards women patients', some occupations other than domestio work, such as kitchen or laundry work, will be provided—occupation . such as light gardening work, in which women are aowudays so largely employed, particularly in tho Old Country. 'iVenty years ago I advocated that special employment should be given women patients, and pressed the matter upon the Government. The suggestion was killed, however, by the late Mr. Seddon, who said that he would not approve of putting women patients to any work that called upon them to wheel barrows. Work oi such a character was not, of course, contemplated." .