✨ Medical Report and Prison Statistics
33
At the end of 1862, there remained forty-eight inmates, being six in excess of the number remaining last year, being the accumulation of the past ten years.
The condition of these unfortunate people is greatly to be pitied; cooped up within narrow yards or cells; they are merely prisoners, vacant, idle, “raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame.”
The nuisance of the Asylum is severely felt, and bitterly complained of by the inhabitants of the Grafton suburb, and its speedy removal to a suitable locality, and establishment on a scientific basis, have become imperious necessities.
As matters are at present, medical treatment suitable for insane persons is impracticable, and so crowded has the Asylum become that until increased accommodation is obtained all new cases are under the necessity of being sent to the town gaol.
Prisons.—In the Mount Eden prison the number of cases admitted into the sick room was 92. Of these three were sextuplicate, four quintuplicate, six quadruplicate, eleven triplicate, twenty-five duplicate, and forty-seven single admissions.
The proportion of sick amounts to two-thirds of the total number of prisoners lodged in the gaol, viz., 159, of whom only 63 never complained at all.
Most of the cases were of a simple character. Two cases of gunshot wounds received by prisoners attempting to escape, were admitted. Happily the wounds were not of a dangerous nature, and soon healed perfectly.
A military convict sustained a severe injury from the premature explosion of a blasting charge. His eyes were much injured, but he has recovered a valuable measure of sight.
The accommodation provided for the sick prisoners is bad, and a few serious cases were obliged to be transferred to the Provincial Hospital.
Since recent alterations in the gaol, the sick room has been used as a mess room for the hard labour men, completely preventing the seclusion of the sick, and causing much noise and confusion.
The state of the City gaol has been remarkably healthy, in fact only one prisoner has died in all the gaols for the last four years.
THOS. M. PHILSON, M.D.
Provincial Surgeon.
January 23, 1863.
RETURN OF PATIENTS TREATED IN THE CITY GAOL, AUCKLAND,
DURING THE YEAR 1862.
| Diseases | Remanded 31st Dec. 1861 | Admitted during 1862 | Total Treated during 1862 | Discharged Cured | Died | Relieved | Remaining 31st Dec. 1862 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abscesses and Ulcers | ... | 3 | 3 | 3 | — | — | — |
| Delirium Tremens | ... | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — |
| Mumps | ... | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — |
| Bronchitis | ... | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — |
| Palpitation | ... | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — |
| Dyspepsia | ... | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — |
| Rheumatism | ... | 5 | 5 | 5 | — | — | — |
| Colic | ... | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — |
| Constipation | ... | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — |
| Dysentery and Diarrhoea | ... | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — |
| Venereal | ... | 5 | 5 | 5 | — | — | — |
| Haemorrhoids | ... | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — |
| Sprain | ... | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — |
| Headach | ... | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — |
| Wound | ... | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — |
| Mania | ... | 2 | 3* | — | — | — | 3* |
| Itch | ... | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — |
| Burn | ... | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — |
| Total | — | 35 | 37 | 34 | — | — | 3 |
- 2 Transferred to Lunatic Asylum; 1 Discharged on Bail.
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Auckland Provincial Gazette 1863, No 5
✨ LLM interpretation of page content
🏥
Annual Medical Report of Auckland Provincial Hospital
(continued from previous page)
🏥 Health & Social Welfare23 January 1863
Medical Report, Hospital, Diseases, Fatal Cases, Asylum, Prisons
- THOS. M. PHILSON, M.D., Provincial Surgeon
🏥 Return of Patients Treated in the City Gaol, Auckland, 1862
🏥 Health & Social WelfarePrisoners, Diseases, Medical Treatment, Auckland