Arizona republican., 1920-11-05
WORK AS A CURE
By Frederic |. Haskin

WSHINGTON, D. C., Nov. 4--Pa- tients in 45 government hospitals are having work prescribed for them for curative purposes
 The ward doctor making his round stops at the bed of a man recovering from a broken arm:
 "A little stiff" comments the doc tor Need something to loosen you up" And he pulls out a large blank and checks it in various places so that it prescribes one hour a day of light crafts work in the ward, as a thera- peutic measure.
 The blank is turned over to a re- construction aide, who proceeds diplo- matically to find out if the patient has any interest in weaving, drawing, basketry or wood carving. If he is apathetic, she tries to arouse his in terest gradually without making him feel that he is being forced. Usually cases of extreme depression can be reached and benefited by hand work of some sort or another.
 At first many doctors in the hos pitals were skeptical of the physical good to be derived from pounding with a hammer or designing 8 book cover But confronted with statistics from their own hospitals and seeing the effect on the patients in their care the government physicians have nearly I all been converted to a firm belief Tn occupatfonal therapy.
 This method of treatment doubtless reminds you ot the work done in the army hospitals by reconstruction aides and it is an outgrowth of that though different in many ways. The idea started years ago, when some hospi' tals and similar institutions had con. valescent patients to do light work, al much for a help to the institution al for the exercise it gave the patient Then, some 15 years before the wal two or three civilian hospitals obtaine' and perhaps keep their muscles iron getting stiff from idleness.
 Grew Out of War
 There the matter stayed until durin the war it became an institution l the army and navy hospitals as edu cational and reconstructive work wit the idea of giving mutilated men som new interest and useful occupation But all this time there was no definit 1 system developed showing the relativ curative values of the different type of work
 This is being worked out now in tn hospitals of the public health servic' and the surgeons in charge say tha they are just beginning to see the pos abilities of work as therapy l Adaptation of the work to the ind vidual is extremely important, accord ing to Dr. Hugh s. Cumming, surgeo l general of the public health servic Unless he is guided in selection work, the active tubercuiar batter may be attracted by heavier woi than is considered to be beneficis such as carpentry.
 Basket work with large reeds oftt fits in we'll with excitable ment cases A simple pattern with no con plications of elaborate design or Ill usual shape is given them, because Il monotony of weaving round and rour without much need for thought has auieting effect. The active tubercul patient, on the other hand, IS rare given reed work, as it requires col siderable effort. But he can make il tricate designs in raffia basketry, this type of work keeps the mind ful occupied, but does not require We great exertion on the part of the pi tient.
 These are crude classfications, ar the doctors are well aware Of 1t. time goes on. however, they expect study the cases in more detail, in ord to know more accurately the value motion and effort used in the craf work.
 A menLAl FletP
 pr. Maddox explains that the cur tive influence of a suitable occup tion is more often mental than phy ical.
 There are nearly always in the ho pital." he says, "a few patients who a inclined to argue about everythiT If you can set one of these men follow your instructions in folding paper puzzle or threading need you have got him to take orders, a he will be that much more aractai when it comes to matters of medici and diet.
 Then, many hospital patients come depressed and morbid from lyi idle during a long convalescence. one of these gloomy patients who able to get about, the doctor wol prescribe some kind of work to
 taken in the hospital workshop.
 first perhaps, the patient is ol wheeled down to the shop to wa the other men at work, as a diversi Then he is drawn into the conver tion of the whiting joking worln and in a few days he is at work ; one of them.
 In the year in which the pul