Callan Park Hospital for the Insane 1877-1923 – The scale of mortality — Australian Historical Association annual conference hosted by The Australian National University

Callan Park Hospital for the Insane 1877-1923 – The scale of mortality (263)

David T Roth

Mortality rates were high in New South Wales asylums in the late colonial years and the early twentieth century, ranging from eleven to fourteen per cent annually for males, somewhat lower for females. My research into the causes of death at Callan Park and other NSW asylums gives a disturbing picture of the scale of the major causes of death relative to the general population. While death rates from these causes fell significantly over the period, the respective death rates rose in asylums. It is true that many patients were older and sicker than the ‘average’ person. Patients with syphilis, or who were smokers or heavy drinkers, had probably incurred significant damage to their hearts, other organs and immune systems before admission. Successive Directors General of the Insane complained about overcrowding. Overcrowding affected everything: contagion rates, staff workload, hygiene, nutrition, recreation, medical care and morale, making asylums vulnerable to epidemics. These environmental factors significantly affected the risk of death. A study of mental health care on a small scale – focussing on a particular asylum – can illuminate larger themes in the history of mental health during the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries.

#OzHA2018