Evening star., 1929-06-24
First One, for Persons Under
II Years Old, to Start
in October.
ATTENTION FOR ADULTS
ALSO is CONTEMPLATED
At Least 500 Pupils Are Found to
Be in Need Of Psychiatric
Service.

A succession OF mental hygiene clinics
In Washington, for adults as well as
children, is contemplated by the board
of managers of the Washington Insti-
tute for Mental Hygiene, of which DR..
william A. White, superintendent Of
ST. Elizabeth's Hospital, is chairman.
When the first clinic opens in Octo-
ber 1t will be devoted entirely to per-
sons under II years Of age. This is a
departure from the original plan and
was forced on the organizers by the
pressure of cases from the public
schools alone. Quoting Miss Jessie La
Sale, assistant superintendent Of
schools, s. Carlyle Adams Of the Ma
tional Education Association, who has
been q prominent worker in the or
ganization Of the clinic, said that at
least 500 pupils in the schools now are
in urgent need Of psychiatric service.
A survey of mental hygiene clinics in
other cities conducted by Mr.. Adams
and other members of the committee
showed that few Of these were able to
handle more than 500 cases year.
Thus work with adjusts probably would
throw an impossible burden on the new
ly organized clinic. The committee also
was infiuenced by the existence of
what amounts to a non-sectarian adult
clinic in the Life Adjustment Center at
the Mount Pleasant Congregational
Church.
Psychiatrist in Schools Sought.
The committee, Mr.. Adams said.
hopes eventually to influence Congress
Gov a f,,I1-firna T1Svchfatfigt
and several assistants in the District
of Columbia schools, which would take
much Of the burden OF the clinic
% %In considering the mental hygiene
condition in washington" Mr. Adams
said, 1--WE were impressed that the Key
to the whole situation lay among cnlI.
dren and young people. The statement
that there are 500 children IN the
schools needing psychiatric attention
does not mean that there are that
number of insane children; 1t merely
means that these children cannot seem
to adjust themselves in their classes
because of some mental situation Wnicn
it will require a psychiatrist to solve.
"Such cases might arise, for exam
ple. in families with many cnnoreni
where there is lack OF adectlon ano
constant turmoil. Sometimes great
improyement can be brought about by
simule means, such as in the case OF
a little girl whose mental symptoms
have been greatly reduced by giving
her q pair of eyeglasses. But In tnls
case a great deal remains to be done,
because the child is in an orphan asy-
INN and her greatest trouble seems 10
be an unsatisfied yearning for anec-
tion."
Two Offer Part Time Service.
The clinic. Mr. Adams said, Will open
with a staff of five specialists, tnciuolng
one first-class psychiatrist, psychol-
opist and three psychiatric social Work
ers In addition two local psychiatrists,
Rev. DIR. Thomas v. Moore OF Cathonc
University and DR.. Loren B. t. Jonn-
son have offered part-time service
Both are members OF the board OF man
ayers. Previously, Mr.. Adams safo, Ihe
only approach to cnlid mentai ny
oiene clinic in Washington has been
Maintained by Father Moore at Provl-
dence Hospital, which has been 80
oyerWorked that sometimes it was neces.
sary to make appointments weeks aneao
THE establishment Of other clinics will
proceed as the finances and stafs pe-
come available, Mr. Adams said. These
viii work with the adult public at large,
partly to bring about q public con-
seriousness of the need OF mental ny
giene as a preventative of much OF the
crime and suffering now found IN the
city. The survey showed, according 70
Mr.. Adams, that Washington Is one OF
the few cities in the country OF any
thing like comparable size without q
mental hygiene clinic.
The function of the psychiatrist, he
said, will be to diagnose and prescribe
the procedure to be followed. The less
serious cases then will be turned over
to the psychiatric social workers to be
followed up in the schools and homes.
The clinic will attend to its own
finances at the start, after which 1t
homes to become afiliated with the
Community Chest. It will work in close
cooperation with the various hospitals
and universities.
It should be emphasized, Mr.. Adams
said. that the clinic does not intend to
thrust on the public wild and unvert-
fied theories Of abnormal human be-
hayior, but 1t will stick close to the
known facts concerning the genesis OF
mental diseases and expects to have
q conservative personnel. The location
has not yet been selected. It is ex-
pected to cost approximately $4,000 q
year.
Credit Given Associations.
Much of the credit for the establish
ment of the clinic, Adams said, should
20 to the local Associations Of Hospital
and Psychiatric Social Workers, espe-
cially to Miss Margaret Hagen Of the
latter organization. She, with Mr..
Adams and Miss Gertrude H. Bowling
of the Visiting Nurse Association, car
ried on the preliminary surveys.
The clinic will work with an advisory
board consisting of the District alienist,
| the presidents of the Medical Society
of the District of Columbia and the
Women's Medical Society, the District
health officer, the deans Of Georgetown.
George washington and Howard Uni
versity Medical Schools and the presi-
dent of the washington Society OF
Nervous and Mental Diseases.
| The institute was incorporated today
with the following board Of managers:
DR.. william A. White. Mrs. Whitman
Cross, DIR. william Knowles Cooper.
e. G. Graham, DR.. Winifred Richmond.
DR.. Loren 3. r. johnson, Willard Smith,
Radford Moses, Mrs. John Jay O'Con-
nor, Miss Gertrude H. Bowling, Miss
Margaret Hagen, Mrs. Harvey w. Wiley,
S. Carlyle Adams, Judge j. Wilmer
/ Latimer, Frederick A. Delano, Mrs Sid
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