New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1916-10-04
FACTS ABOUT THE, ST. PETER
STATE HOSPITAL.

For the information of the delegates
to the conference of charities and cor
rections which met at Saltwater, Su-
perintendent Phelps of the St. Peter
State Hospital prepared the following
statement.
Has Cared for $4,000
This institution, since it's founding
in 1866, has cared some for $4,000 people
some of them for as long as forty years.
This last two years we received 841
people.
The people so cared for were, most
of them, not only a burden to their
people, but in the majority of cases,
were practically obliged to have guarding
and care that could not be furnished at
home. Many of them were a source
of danger. Such institutions are not a
luxury, but practical necessity.
One In $50 Is Insane
The present population of insane
under State care represents approx
mately one to every $50 of State pop
ulation, including men, women and
children, This, however, is less than in
many States, and more than in some.
The problem is about the same the
world over.
This institution housed 1882 patients
on August, l, 1916. There is shown an
average annual increase of approximately
S per cent per year during the past years.
This, however, is not far from the in
crease of State population.
Cost $3.65 Week Each
The per capita cost of running this
institution has been running at ap-
proximately $685. per week, per patient.
This pays for everything, including
such large items as fuel, light, heat,
power, laundry, food, clothing, wages
and salaries. This includes also the
Asylum for Dangerous Insane, which
is really separate institution, with
considerably larger per capita cost.
With the officers and working force,
there is a population of over 1900 living
and working together as social unit.
To conduct the affairs of this small town,
there are, of course, subdivisions into
departments.
The Medical and Supervisory force
consists Of the Superintendent, five
physicians, one pathologist, one druggist,
two Superintendent of Nurses, two
supervisors of clothing and property, and
a force of fifty-four men nurses and sixty
seven women nurses. The care of the
patients, the Investigations into all their
physical and mental conditions-all
records of their stay and all clinical
findings, are brought into form through
this force
May Come Voluntarily
Patients may come in as voluntary
admissions. Nothing is needed what
ever, except that they sign paper
before witnesses, stating that they so
come. In most cases, however, they
are accompanied in a friendly way by
relative or friend. 1t is thought that
many more would come in this way, if
the matter were brought to their at
tention at the right time.
Patients so coming are not legally or
by themselves assigned as insane, but
only as nervous and needing care. Such
patient may demand his release in
writing on three day notice, and if he
can be considered safe, he may be re-
leased without any formality. If not
safe, he may, of course, be designated to
come up for legal examination.
Patients can also come as placed"
under the same regulations, but in this
case, a relatives or Judge does the
placing and not the patient himself.
There is no legal warrant in these cases,
and they may be released as are the
voluntary patients.
The majority of patients come by
legal warrant issued by the Judge of
Probate, certifying that they are insane.
Memory Last to Fail
The common mistake is to assume
that our patients have no intelligence.
We often speak of them as Intelligent"
patients, in distinction from the grossly
demented. Sometimes nearly half are
able to give their own past history.
People often speak of the correct memory