Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989, June 02, 1960, Image 21

Historic Oregon Newspapers

Medford mail tribune., June 02, 1960, Image 21

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Newspaper Page TextO O o O Public Indifference To Mental Health Cited by Student tit-i. ui. u'Vi u;, . "ri r-uale of the trhool of Journalism at , ihf I'niverkiiy of oreion M an ; "editorial summary" of the con - elusion, developed In the tenlor tlifsis required of earh graduate. The opiniont ara thoit of tnt writer. ; By KARLYN CARRUTHERS - (Eugene. Oregon) Mental illness, which costs Americans untold suffering ; and an estimated $3 billion ; a year, is the nation's number . one health problem. More Americans are in the I hospital lor mental illness : than for polio, cancer, tuber- culosis and all other diseases ; combined. The mentally ill occupy one-half of the hos ? pital beds In the United States. It is estimated that one out of ten Americans will . spend some part of his life in : a mental hospital. ; Yet the jOblie, on the ; whole, is treating the problem with indifference. It shows . great concern about the prog ; ress that is being made against other diseases such as polio '. and cancer. But there i no general public effort to com ' bat mental illness. The pub lic remains calm even thouglQ ' : state hospitals, wntcn care lor " 85 per cent of the mentally(jj - in, are oiien overcrowaea ana - facing personnel shortages. It is lifferent despite the fact thai not one major mental . health research discovery of . the past 50 years was made in the United States. Feeling of Shame The indifference is partial-.- ly based on a general public i feeling that being mentally ill is shameful. The strength of this feeling was demonstra- ted as recently as 1B59, when " Earl Long, then governor of ' Louisiana, drew national at '' tention to mental illness. He ' was committed once to a ;. mental hospital. When out, '. he played -bavoc with official ' burthess V!d behaved in an unpleasant, unbalanced man--. ner. Unfortunately, the public reaction was one of disgust, ' instead of sympathy. Contrast ' this with the way that the public reacted after President . Eisenhower's heart attack. ." In order to abolish Hlhe ' stigma of mental illness there must be a general realization that mentiCT) illness is not hereditary, that under certain : conditions it could happen to ' anyone and that mental dis ; eases are not rare; they are . common. For instance, in World War II mental breakdowns were the second most Qpmmon ' cause of disability, fitter war wounds. Furthermore, it was : found that almost any aviator, : no matter how stable or uc ; Bed he migbtshave been, de . nlnnpH svnWnma of neurosis ! after 35 missions over Berlirj , when the public unaer " stands that mentaMllness is a disease not a disgrace, perhaps - it will insist on more intens : ive treatment and research of mental illness. Possibilities Illustrated . ift' Kansas state mental ; h e a 1 1 h program illustrates !what can be achieved when "the public knows the facts I about(j)ier0l illness. Kansas people became mental health conscious because of the na tionally famous lenninger Foundation, located in To- peka. In 1949 Kansas Increas ed its state mental health bud ;get 60 per cent, partly because -of the direct efforts of Dfc Karl Menningcr. By 1954 the number of patients at Topeka "state hospital had dropped -from 1800 to 1400, while the "number of patients in prac- fYirally every state mentajrkos fiital in the country was-ris-iing. ; Despite the progressive pro gram found in Kansas and lother states such as New York ;and California, indifference is hindering mental health pro grams in many states. I State hospitals often pro vide only ctrejodial care, be cause they lack the physical facilities and personnel to give intensive treatment. Imagine -the public outrage if general ihospitals were so limited they ould only mane tnenLraiienis comfortable instead of trying "to cure them! ' In 1958 the inadequacy of many state mental yjpitajs :was brought into the open nsv Jthe American Psychiatric as- He Didn't Dig the Sandbox Burglars Milwaukee - Sanitation Superintendent William J. 2?heinfrank doesn't dig the ;way citizens have been play ing it fast and loose in the jcity's sandboxes. At the beginning of the win 'ter the city put 1,200 sand-boxes and shovels at strategic spots and marked them, "Sand for Icy Streets." About three-fourths of the sand is missing. So are 307 shovels. , ' Rheinfrank wants a city ordinance passed that would fine people for stealing the sand. "It's bad enough that some .people steal it to weight down their car trunks," he said, "but -w found one service station operator who covered his whole lot with the city's sand." awuauun, It evaluated 215 large public mental hospitals. (There are a total of 277 pub lie ftental hospitals in the United States.) Full approval was given to 24 of the hos pitals and SI received con ditional approval. Thus, 140 of the larger mental hospitals could not even meet the mini mum standards of the A.P.A. 'Human Warehouse' Dr. William Mennlnger in 1957 called state mental hos pitals "human warehouses." They are overcrowded and personnel shortages are de priving the patients of the treatment they need. 3 den iars& DOWNTOWN THIS WEEK o Extra Savings Friday and Saturday You'll Find "MORlF'of Everything In Downtown MEDFORD! Extra Sayings! Extra Values! SHOPqNOW! 77 ROM AIR-COCLEO PORTABLE RECIRCULATE EVAPORATIVE TYPE Single Speed S 27 88 Motor 30 North Central, Medford iaV - f i?ar in i-yiittiitii ir'. end closet clatter INTERLOCKING VUE-CHEST reg. 1.98, fri. and sat. 1.69 At last a ploce to put all those important little things. Just the thing for visible shoe storage, Frames interlock to form a smart rigid chest. Veterans Administra t i o n hospitals, which provide out standing treatment for men tally ill war veterans, have far bigger staffs than most state hospitals. In 1956 it was estimated that it would take the Western states 29 years to catch up with the V.A. hos pitals in psychiatrists, 21 years to get as many Ph.D. clinical psychologists and 9 years to equalize the ratio for social workers. Despite the advantage they have over state hospitals, the managers of the V.A. hospitals say that they would Increase each pro fessional group by 25 per cent. VsJ Urn 44 U BUYS O SqUfrn Gage Ffii rfey Be Usee! At Fan Only Water, Capacity 3 Gallons. Per bf oj mi it V State mental hospital often find it hard to attract pro fessional personnel because the salaries they oCr are so low. A certitSd psychiatrist must spend approximately 10 years in post graduate train ing. It is not surprising that the few vho endure this long and expensive- training often prefer a better paying private practice. Other psychiatric workers must also spend lot of time and money to be come trained in their pro fessions. Great Advances Seen ' The general shortage of personnel Is preventing the Jmd- TERRIFIC SPECIAL PURCHASE! MISSES and WOMEN'S Famous Maker's LATEX SWIM SUITS $ 3. o and 5. Sleek finish, cleen lines go with this lastex (acetate-cotton-rubber) sharkskin that fits without a wrinkle," takes you stylishly through the suntan season. Wonderfully elastic blend fab. ric is lustrous and durable. White, black, colors; 32 to 38, PiNNIY'S MIZZANINI FIRST AND ONIY Sites MVi te 16Vt IPerimiry'sI MM WOOLWORTH'S Satisfaction Guaranteed or Tour Money Refunded 39 North Central Ave. Phone SPrlnj 2-4701 JUST ARRIVED! All Hardwood Eastern o BEDROOM SETS 20 NEW SETS priced from 115 00 for Bed & Dresser SEE THEM TODAY! WEEKS 114 Wast Main Stroot United States from obtaining the full benefit of the new development in the mental health field. Some experts say that these developments are Just the beginning. They be lieve that great advances can be made through research. Mental health, research has already abown some concrete benefits, notably the new drugs and the concept of the thereaputle community h o s pttal which emphasizes treat ing the patient as a sick per son who can get well and be a useful member of society again. The amount spent by fed- On Sate Tomorrowl J9:30 Sharp AT WOOLWORTH'SlT BREEZY COOL, SH03T SLEEVED SPORT SfflffK 187 : . m - MM OONU Importecftashable light weight woven cotton . . . dries sites ii a jlffyl feqgirt includ: 2-way collar wtrtt pttrmanant Mays. 2 pMkttt, ihft litems.. Mcurtly MlwrtxJ thi m4 Mat Niltranr ttirttoriV . . ) un Im wrn In r out. JUL. . luy On Our Same Everyday EASY TERMS! Ne Cirryinfl Cktftee er lahiftft - We Cerrr Owr Own Ctreii Fro & ORR Phono SP 2-9331 eral, state, and national Volun tary agencies on i.ientil health research increased from $10,786,253 in 1955 to almost $30 million in 1958. However, this sum is still far below the $53 million spent on cancer research and is only one-tenth of what America spends on chewing gum. The scope of present treat ment of the mentally ill and the amount of mental health research being done indicates that mental illness is the na tion's number one health problem primarily because the American public has al lowed it to become so. TOPS for This .summer, the smartest topsor bpfi, beach Vr to wear with your short! are terry tops . . . soft, absorb ent and pretty, tool Our collection includei Nancy prints, polka dots, etc., on white backgrounds. ONLY Jill I. Main St. -Next Door to Robinson Bros. SI " REGULAR PRICE M SE Available in 4 tMciAtisrs in mMmimiisi $S?lae!Z in H,8m,wf.? 245 S.oCentral at 10th You wouldn't give up the furnace en a wintry day . . then why put oj buying an air conditioner for warm weather living especially when It adds so ' much to your year-round comfort . . . and for to little money - ,.., O AIR CONDITIONER! Lt Hftpco't air cMKtlilnfl lahfcialitrt ihow y a imIiI H tiactly fit yr n1i. (Haw G! Air CtriJIHntrt fram Mty $24.t5). E1APC0 The Home Appliance Co. IIBEitl Malflb Mtdford Menderes Backers Placed in Jail Ankara -0JPD- More than 300 legislators belonging to ousted ex Premier Adnan Menderes' Democratic party have been arrested to curb a "whispering campaign" against Gen. Cemal Cursel's government, It was reported Wednesday, Army sources said the ar rested members of Parliament are being held on Yassiada Island In the Sea of Marmora. About 80 per cent of the 408 Democrats in Parliament are now under arrest. SyiniTier ISDAEJl MvAmv CaWt: RED , YELLOW TURQUOIsl GREEN Open Monday Nit Plenty of FREE Parking ' You Afford A HOME $099 LI Court Takes Bids Under Advisement TVve Jackson county court Wednesday took under ad visement five bids for a rotary compressor for the Jackson county roads department. The bids were Cal-Ore Ma chinery company, Medford, $10,915, including trade-In of two 1947 model compressors; Freenaughy Machinery com pany, Portland, 8,989, includ. trade-in; Loggers and Con tractors Machinery company, Portland, $12,090, no trade in; Baltzer Machinery compa ny, Portland, $10,900, with trade-in; and West Equipment company, Eugene, $9,840, no trade-in. Reg. 2.98, 3.49 WASHABLE SCATTER BUGS u USE wards . . . CONVENIENT CKEUIT ItKMJ 117 Selfk CerroJ Avente Psie SP 3-731 0 JCfcWi'Til 9 catin ttHftoibi vinyl . a tr wHuef mvtai mt tic in a beiUiant opaque Fulh9tw beass cou- Circa Lcfr! FRIDAY and SATURDAY ONLY! ot. (J Federal Tax Includedl A Nice Selection To iooie From YOUR CHARGE ACCOUNT INVITED! e3 Grange News Central Point Grange A travelogue of colored slides, taken in Carlsbad Cav oss, will be shown Friday, Jtrhe 3, at the Central Point Grange meeting by Delmar Smith. The lecturer, Mrs. Homer Jeffries, has also ar ranged for a ladles quartet from Medford to sing. During the business meeting the spe cial committee on the schWl reorganization bill will re port. Canada's first parliament met in Halifax, Nova Scotia, 200 years ago. U o o 27"x48" ASSORTED PATTERNS DECORATOR COLORS NON-SKID BACKS . . Guaranteed 5 Ye 716 MEDFORD Jewelry Regular (Values to $2.00 MAIL TRIIUNI, Medfera, Or. Thunder, June J, 10 (o) (o)c i Main and Bartlert Strti Phone SP 2-6428 Downtown Medford