I often have wondered what happened to not just the mentally ill, but those kids who had been abandoned & landed there. I was there in the 70's & it took no time to become institutionalized.
As a former inmate patient of C.I September 1973 through December 1973 I can say that these pictures give me the chills. I will have to go through all of them to find the adolescent unit.
It was one huge day room that seemed to have Soul Train on all day & the other room was the sleeping dorm with rows of beds lining each wall. We, the patients, had the enviable job of cleaning and caring for the severely brain damaged patients (retarded was the term used at the time). I had a 16 year old girl who was incontinent and also had her period.
I did see some abuse, but then just being there was abusive.
My folks didn't want me around and so warehoused me until I found a way to get out legally.
the craftsmanship in these old buildings is something you just don't see anymore. well, unless it's taken from a salvage yard or like this. just wonderful
i worked in a nursing home and these were not only used for hydro, they were used for daily baths. it did have a chair on the front that was detachable so you could wheel it into the patients room,if they couldnt bear weight a lift was used to lower them in the chair , then you could wheel them right to the tub, hook them up and use a pedal to raise it and away they went. from my experience, most didnt like going up in the air, and alot were freaked out by the water going almost up to their necks. as for the temps. if it got to a certain temp an alarm would go off so you knew you were too hot. ours hand a hose built in and a few levers for soap and cleaner, some had a built in scale too ...posted by Jan
I also worked in a nursing and on a
med / surg unit for many years and found these tubs indispensible when caring for patients who were not ambulatory or who were temporarily incapable of taking care of their activities of daily living alone. As for the '"cold water therapy" reference........I never one single time saw or heard any nurse or doctor order such TX or even refer to such TX being utilized in the past. If I were taking care of an elderly relative with limited or no mobility in my home.....this would be a welcome piece of equipment in order to reduce my workload and stress levels. This tub is still utilized on many NHCU's and Med /Surg units around the country .