OPINION
Student s death exposes flaws in psych latnc care
Lia Salciccia
On Oct. 10, 1990, Universi
ty graduate student lung
Sook Jang was found
dead in the bed that she was
strapped into at the Lane Coun
ty Psychiatric Hospital. Forcibly
institutionalized and injected
with drugs, denied access to her
doctor and kept in seclusion and
restraint, the native Korean was
probably not given many choic
es regarding her treatment.
Not only does the death of
lung Sook |ang imply ineptitude
and foul play on the part of the
Lane County Psychiatric Hospi
tal, but it aiso exposes an ugly
pattern in our society regarding
the mentally ill.
The crazy have no rights. The
doctors decide not only whom
to lock up, but what to do with
them once they are locked up.
Patients are given drugs to turn
them into zombies, and if the
loonies are still acting up. they
are put into seclusion and
restraint. If the people in power
at the looney bin mess up a lit
tle. no matter. Who are people
going to believe: a respected
medical professional or a psy
cho?
The Lane County medical
examiner listed the cause of
Jang's death as bipolar disorder,
according to an investigative
report by the Oregon Advocacy
Center, a non-profit organization
providing advocacy services to
the disabled. Something about
that listing as cause of death
bothered me. I didn't think any
one was capable of dying of
bipolar disorder (a euphemism
for manic-depressive disorder).
For those who are unfamiliar,
bipolar disorder affects the
brain. The cause is unknown but
linked to heredity, and symp
toms include radical mood
swings from elation to despair.
Sources 1 contacted — which
included an anonymous White
Bird employee, a psychiatrist
and Ask-A-Nurse — told me
dying of a bipolar disorder is
highly unlikely. It was possible,
they said, to kill or starve one
self in an agitated manic state,
but not die from the disorder
itself.
Psychiatrist George Kjaer said,
"There are in fact cases that peo
ple have had manic disorders
that were so severe that they
were fatal.”
In Jang's case, it can be con
strued that Jang was so agitated
from being strapped down and
isolated for several hours that it
sent her into cardiac arrest.
So the question is. was Jang's
treatment the cause of her
death? I think so. So does the
Oregon Advocacy Center, whose
report states that while there
was no “criminal wrongdoing"
on the part of the psychiatric
hospital, the “inadequate and
inhumane treatment ... con
tributed to Jung Sook Jang's
death."
But in light of the way the sys
tem works, her treatment was
par for the course. Inhumane
treatment of mental patients is
nothing new. There are some
key points of fang's case that mn
a parallel with what's wrong
with the way society views and
treats the mentally ill.
There is the issue of whether
she was "crazy" in the first
place, or in noed of "psychiatric
treatment" at all. She was first
treated in Nevada for "depres
sion. sleeplessness and religious
activity." stated the OAC report.
In Eugene, she was seen praying
and dancing in the lobby of the
Hilton and wandering around
the University campus, com
pelled by a "message" she had
received to "work for God.”
If you were asked to count
how many people you knew
who suffered from depression,
the number probably wouldn't
fit on one hand You probably
wouldn't call those people men
tally ill. either. Consider, too.
how many people you havo wit
r
nessed on this campus engaged
in overzealous religious activity.
They may seem bizarre, but do
you see them and think that they
should be institutionalized?
Cultural perspective plays an
important role in this drama.
The OAC report stated: "Jung
Sook long was Korean. Karly
records note that she had fewer
problems while with her family
in Korea. No person knowledge
able in Korean culture was ever
consulted. No one searched to
discover if hor behavior, partic
ularly praying in the streets and
other public places, was accept
ed activity in Korea. No one con
tacted doctors in Korea to deter
mine treatment alternatives that
might be common in Korea but
uncommon in the United
States."
The Western system of mental
health does not encourage alter
natives. She was treated like
most loonies here — locked
away and doped up.
The combination of Haldol
and Kskalith (Lithium), given to
Jang for manic depression, is
warned against by the Physi
cian’s Desk Index. In an autop
sy. an arteriosclerosis condition
was revealed, and the OAC.
report implies that this condi
tion combined with those two
drugs contributed to her death.
Psychiatrist George Kjaer said
that there is a danger in combin
ing Lithium and Haldol, dangers
that aren’t detectable until it's
too late. Kjaer said "there’s the
possibility of having an ailment
which arises from having too
much Dopamine present in the
brain.” which, when combined
with the two drugs, can bo fatal.
It's time for a better way.
Along with health care reform.
this nation needs to rethink
mental health reform as well.
But Clinton's new plan does not
aim to cover mental health.
We haven't come far from the
days when society's crazy were
shackled and thrown in dun
geons. Yesterday's shackles are
today's leather restraints.
"Crazy" is subjective. It's time
to rethink what it means to live
in an altered state of reality,
along with rethinking how we
mistreat people who exist in
those altered states.
Maybe someday you'll want
to visit those states yourself
Maybe they're a nice plate to go
Maybe you think the only thing
that's crazy is this column.
It's a fine line.
Ua Salciccia is a columnist
for the Emerald.
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