Comments

In days gone by it was realized that people whose bodies don't bend easily needed to be bathed somewhat differently than those whose bodies are more flexible. As noted above, filling an entire tub and cleaning it in between clients when you are supposed to bathe 20 people in a 2-hour period is difficult, if not impossible, to do thoroughly and safely. As well, there are safety issues with lifting people whose bodies don't bend easily into and out of deep tubs, both as far as potentially dropping the folks who are being lifted and with ruining the backs of the people doing the lifting. The compromise was what we now call a shower trolley or shower gurney (see http://www.landm.com.au/kh600.html and http://www.westonsinternet.co.uk/images/aa1760.jpg for examples of current equipment). However, when this equipment was first developed before they had all the swell light weight stuff we have these days, they used ceramic tubs, which, as I noted above, we still use in many facilities (such as the one where I am currently employed) and the staff call them "slab tubs" precisely because they resemble autopsy tables. We also have the more modern shower trolleys, but they aren't as stable, and this is important when you are trying to bathe someone who is 200+ pounds and can't assist you in bathing and who may have severe contractures and spasticity, making for a wild shower when they are soapy and you are supposed to prevent them from slipping out of your grasp and landing where they shouldn't. I humbly admit that there is something about a cart with wheels that makes one leery of using it for bathing large wiggly people. Therefore, we are sometimes reduced to using bizarre looking but much safer equipment, such as the slab tubs. Now, if you want to provide a service for people with disabilities and make a lot of money, this would be an excellent field to go into to produce newer, better, safer equipment . . .

However, I have to admit, it is much more exciting to think of this as a draining table than just a boring old tub . . .

I agree with Rachael about this not being a tub of any kind. Autopsy table would be my guess.

The marble altars have all been smashed up as well.

I also have some of it as well. It was littered in front of the door.

Nah, all large residential centers have morgues. You have to understand that the majority of people who lived in these places were folks with some pretty serious physical/medical/behavioral needs and that even with the best of care (which this group of folks obviously did not get) by definition deaths were expected, as these people were sent here for life. And given that many of these folks did not have families to claim them after they died, you couldn't just dump them somewhere for the city to collect and dispose of, so they were often buried on the institution grounds.

These days a morgue in a residential facility is where you keep people until they are transferred out to the local medical examiner's office, which most folks are these days, exactly so they can rule out (or rule in) abuse and homicide as a possible cause of death. However, sad to say there are still people living in institutional facilities with no one to claim them when they die, so some things haven't changed.

This was a different age and different time and it's always been easier to judge people with 20-20 hindsight than to advocate for government to give more money to the states to provide for folks with serious handicaps. That is true even today. It's always been easier to toss bricks at the people who worked at these facilities with people that no one else would take care of, who did not have adequate facilities and supplies, who had crappy salaries, who had no support from other people in doing the difficult jobs they did, who had atrocious staffing ratios, and who received minimal training and compensation but who kept these societally rejected people alive, than it has been to understand what an impossible job these staff had and how remarkable it is that they kept as many people alive as they did doing work that very few people will do even today.

Just a little note of levity there. ;-)

Stepping down off soapbox now.

Well, a "state school" was basically a hospital for young people with mental illnesses, and many of them had physical ailments as well because of birth defects and other complications. Some of them needed constant medical attention, and as with any hospital, there will be many deaths involved with treating these people, especially when we didn't have the medical technology and understanding of today.

What's most unnerving is the fact that this so-called "school" needed a morgue. Excuse me, but was the policy 'abuse 'em til you lose 'em'?

Now that is pretty neat. I really like this picture.

You should pirate the place and do your own hotel!
I wonder how much people would pay to stay in an authentic abandoned hotel?

Brown isn't a very romantic colour.
Brown more or less reminds me of dried blood.

If you look closely you will see two faces. One face looks to be a soldier and below him another mans face. I don't see a child. I believe you Sue. You do see a face. What you see is how you look at it. LOOK AGAIN SubKID!!!!!

Now, for some reason, this shot takes me backt to "Session 9". I don't know why, but I would expect a dark, menacing shadow to come lurking out from behind the counter.
Duhnuh. Duhnuh. *jaws music*

I really love this shot, a lot.

This photo looks to have a childs head in it. Now that's eerie!!!! Almost looks like a big bug hanging.

Great Shot! There's no doubt these chairs enjoy each other's company.