Complaints by Insane Patients

Extract

Most of us are in the active discharge of the duties of medical attendance on the insane, many of us are at the head of large public institutions. We are by the public expected both to be learned, ready and exact. Serious calls are daily made on our knowledge of medicine and surgery, but by many of us I am certain these are much more readily responded to than the calls on our powers of administration and on our judicial functions as guardians and care-takers, as well as the physician and friend of our patient. Now to my mind no one portion of duty is more unpleasant than having to listen to complaints of illtreatment, or even negligence and carelessness made by patients, to investigate them, to weigh, balance and decide on the best course of action.