The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1905-10-21
STATES INSANE
POPULATION
Dir. Britton D. Evans Analy-
zes the Laws Relating to
Their Commitment and
Care.
FINDS THEM VERY MUDDlED


THE INCREASE or INSANITY
TREATMENT AND MAINTE-
NANCE.
At the. conference of heads of Charity
and Criminal Institutions. at Trenton
last week, DR.. Britton d. Evans, medical
director of the State Hospital at Morris
Plains, made an exhaustive report. He
said in part:
Il feel that / should call your atten-
tion particularly to a few Of the import
ant matters, which in my judgment
should consistently have legislative att
tention should revision and codifcation
of the laws governing public charities be
seriously considered The points which
have though might consistently com
mand your attention are the following
'0ne, our statutes relating to the COM
mitment of insane persons should be so
framed as to make it obligatory upon the
courts to which the original commits
ment papers are sent for review and adj
judication, to make an order of approval
or disapproval within twenty days after
such papers are sent to them. Under
the present law the judge may receive
these original papers, consisting of a
written petition and the certificates of
two physicians, and postpone action upon
them almost indefinitely, leaving the
hospitals without judicial information as
to whether the patient has been deter
mined to be INDECENT or self-supporting
whether sane or insane. or if INDECENT,
from what source his maintenance shall
come or how the hospital authorities
shall classify him.
Two. the court orders of approval or
disapproyal should be worded so as to
clearly set forth in every case, without
room for doubt, whether the patient shall
be State INDECENT county INDECENT or
private, so that the classification as to
the manner of maintenance cannot be
mistaken. Indefniteness of court orders
leaves the records Of both the medical
and business departments in an unsatis-
factory and unsettled condition.
Three. the law should be made ex-
>plicit in the matter of counties reimburs-
ing themselves for moneys expended for
the maintenance of persons committed
as INDECENT patients, when it is later
found that they possess means of sup
port. and that the hospitals shall not "
any indefteness of the law be forced to
become a collection agency for the
counties.
-Four, the certifying physicians shall
be required to incorporate into their GER
tifcates the date of the professional ex-
animation upon which such certificates
are based The present law contemplates
that this shall be done. but does not pos
itively require it. The w4ly evidence
obtainable by the officers of the inst:ttu-
tions to the date of the certificate is
found in the date Of the affidavit. which
is inserted by the officer who administers
the oath. Such evidence is only pre-
sunlptive; not positive.
Five. the law should specify that the
certificates of the examining physicians
shall be void if the examination upon
which such certificates are based was
made more than ten days prior to the
taking of such alleged insane person to
the institution named in the commitment
papers.
Six. that the present law which regu-
lates and defines legal settlement be re-
peaied and new one enacted more in
keeping with common sense.
Seven, a standard for county institu-
tions should be established; such stand
ard to be well defined and all county in.
stituti0ns required to come up to the re-
quirements Of this standard in the mat.
ter of equipment of. caring for, treating
and managing their insane, in order te
entitle them to the So per capita pei
week, which, under the present law, they
draw from the State treasury for the
maintenance of their INDECENT insane
Eight, in view of the county institu-
tions receiving the same per capita assist
ance from the State treasury as do the
State hospitals for the insane, there
should be legal provision esta ablished pro
vidlng that the State shall have adequate
administrative authority over such insti
tutional
Nine. the Department Of Charities
and Corrections should look after al
matters relating to the qualification