Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-03-21
By jones G. Deone

A free psychiatric clinic,
stated entirely BY volunteers. ID
now coming to the help Of North
west Washington parents in
Strengthening the kinks In mall
adjusted school children.
Washington's public schools
have no psychiatrists. but like
schools everywhere they have
problem children. Some months
age, concerned at the number
of problem cases with which they
were unable to cope, officials and
parents at several Northwest
schools decided to seek profess
sional help.
The new clinic. now in opera
ton at Macfarland Junior High
School. is the result. It has 81
stan Of 10
Second Clinic in City.
Macfarland's clinic is the SEQ
ond Of its type here. It Is pat
termed on the successful Kiwanis
Clinic In operation for the last
two years at Anacostia High
School, in the Southeast.
Al parent-teacher organization
Council A of Area 2 Of the
District Congress of Parents and
Teachers-took the lead in the
organization Of the new clinic.
Serious emotional trouble Of
ten lies behind low grades. or
bad behavior. Parents are COM /
ing to realize, according to Mrs,
Agnes IN. Arnold. MacFarland
assistant principal, that bad
children need help, rather than
punishment.
But parents often can't pro-
vide the help themselves, or
pay the high cost of private pro-
fessioflal advice. And the city's
few clinics are seriously over
taxed.
Mrs. Arnold brought the need
to the councils attention.
Director Is Volunteer.
Last month. the parents found
O pSychiatrist willing to be the
volunteer director. He Is DR..
George w. Sprehn, practicing
psychiatrist who also is on the
staff of the Washington Insti-
tute of Mental Hygiene. The
clinic opened on March 2, far
earlier than the parents COM
mittee had hoped. It works this
way:
Either the school principal or
parent Of a child showing some
difficulty in school work or social
adjustment may call Mrs. Arm
old for an appointment.
DR.. Sprehn will interview each
child, and a social worker will
interview the parents. The child
will be referred to 4 psychologist
for intelligence and other tests.
The staff will meet to discuss
the case. Then DR.. Sprehn will
interview the parents and the
child again and present recon-
mendations. In some cases they
may be referred to clinics or
private physicians. In others.
parents may be advised on how
to handle the problem them
selves.
IL Help in Work.
Dr.. Sprehn became interested
In the project when he first heard
of it and was persuaded to take
charge by a colleague, DR.. Aaron
Esmans Another psychiatrist, DR..
Irving NJ. Ryckoff, staff member
Of the National Institute Of Men
tai Health in Bethesda, joined
DR.. Sprehn. Since then. II other
volunteers have been recruited.
The clinic is an entirely free
and voluntary operation from the
standpoint of patients as well
as staff. The parents don't have
to use the clinic if they don't
wish, even if a case is referred
by a principal. This doesn't
worry DR.. Sprehn.
We've got plenty to do with
those who want to come in," he
commented, pointed out that
Mcfarland has "a cases wait.
ing, all referred just by the prin-
cipal. And 10 other schools are
in the clinics sponsor roster,
with no cases from them listed
yet.
The clinic is not Offering any
professional treatment at pres
ent. Only diagnostic service is
being given at the outset, DR..
Sprehn said, until it is clear
how much demand that will
make on the clinics time. The
clinic is now scheduled for 1880
to $3.50 pm. Tuesday nights, and
the interviewing and diagnostic