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Show WORK FOUi BEST REMEDYFOR IISIE State Mental Hospital Report Re-port Shows Nearly Half j Inmates Regain Reason. The percentage of recoveries scored at the state mental hospital at Provo. is 45.5. according to the report of Dr. George E. Hyde, superintendent of the Institution, which was filed yesterday i with the governor. This is considered to be a better showing show-ing than that of the average institution of this sort. During the last six months, according to the reort, eighty-two pa- tients were discharged, of which number j forty-rive were completely recovered, Lhir-ty-slx were greatly improved and one was found not to be insane. Health conditions among the patients have been good, the report says, and the deatii rate has been exceptionally low. The number of deaths shown for the last ; six months was seventeen out of a total population in the institution of rt56. Dr. Hyde finds that work has a beneficial bene-ficial effect in all cases where mental power is not absolutely gone. It has been his policy to keep all patients busy in some line of activity best suited to the need of their mental condition. He finds t hat the "work euro" is particularly effective ef-fective in cases of adolescent insanity. The principal work given patients is metal and wood working, printing and book binding, raffia and reed work, knitting and needle work. The men patients assist in the work on the farm, in the daliy, in the garden, and In making necessary improvements In the buildings and grounds. During tiie fruit season even the women assist in the orchards, picking small fruits. They are also called upon to aid the cook in canning large quantities of fruits and vegetables that are put up for winter use. The report shows that there are seventy-eight feeble-minded persons in the institution in-stitution whose mental condition varies from the lowest grade of idiocy to the high-grade moron. Dy Hdye says there are many distressing cases of this nature awaiting vacancies in the Institution. He suggests that if the work of caring for the feeble-minded is to be continued in this institution more adequate provision must be made for thfe education and training train-ing of such patients. Dr. Hyde requests an appropriation of $o000 to cover the Installation of a small electro-hs'drotherapeutic apparatus. The doctor says that this method of treatment treat-ment is now universally used In eastern mental hospitals and removes the necessity neces-sity of using narcotics and sedative drugs. lie urges that this system be adopted in the Utah institution. It is estimated that $204,000 will be necessary to meet expenses during the next two years and the legislature is asked to appropriate this amount. |