The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1912-08-23

lily disturbed require more care. Those
4 are given special diet, special nursing
continuous baths and other hydrother.
i apeutic treatments. medicine at times
and great deal of individual atten-
ton.
j Stewards Should be Careful.
In answer to the question, are the
! stewards as a rule capable of proper
1 ~ caring for the insane would say
that an intelligent humane steward
who has long associated with the in
! sane and has become especially
trained for the work, is certainly cap
able of caring for the protracted and
stationary cases in many instances
but is not prepared to treat the acute
, cases. In county homes where in
| sane are kept, the steward should in
all cases be appointed for long term
of years, not less than four to six
years, and should not be removed as
long as he is doing his work well.
Acute cases of recent onset should
be sent to the state hospitals if they
are to be given the best chance of re-
covery. The protracted case can be
kept nearer their home and nearer
their friends if they arr in the county
homes. If given proper supervision
some of them can do much useful
work on the institution farm, in the
dairy and engine room, and in the
laundry and sewing room. They should
in all cases be requested and perhaps
persuaded to work and never forced
to work. The work should be distrib-
uted among the patients so that all;
who are capable should have the bene-
fit of the work They should be fire.
quently visited by physician and
carefully examined at least as to
their physical ills.
In the state hospitals. one attendant
is employed to every eight patients.
In the county homes one attendant
should be. employed to about twelve
patients but the regulations as before
stated, require at least one to twenty
of either sex and an additional one to
each part of that number in excess of
ten.
Our System Not Ideal
The plan a. present most widely
used in this country of keeping the
insane in great buildings is far from
ideal. In Japan and in Belgium al
much better system is and has been
in use for many years past. In. each
of these countries there is a rural
community occupying what would
probably amount to about Gozen sec
tions of land, scattered over with
small cottages where the cottagers
take the insane to board At the Bel
GUM colony at Gheel each cottage can
take not to exceed two For this serv-
ice they charge SSo00 to 100000 per
annum, according to the wealth of the
patient The state of course pays the
minimum amounts for the poor pa
tients, which is IL to 1Sc per day
They are here associated more with
sane people than our patients are and
they are given more of chance to
work at the ordinary duties about the
house and garden.
The colony for the insane in Japan
is one of the most beautiful valleys in
the flowery kingdom and the patients
are treated with every consideration.
would suggest that for the care Of
the insane You advocate the construc-
ton Of moderate sizeG detached cot
tages, capable Of holding not over
twenty so that the different classes of
patients can be segregated. This
would be slight approach to the
Belgium and Japanese system and is
preferable to one large building.