How we did it

Re Damning findings on restraint, seclusion (April 27), modern mental health authorities despise old mental hospitals and their old staff – but they ought to run to us for advice: ‘‘How did you do it?’’

I worked for 40 years from the 1950s in mental hospitals both here and in Australia as a staff nurse and psychiatric social worker. I have never even seen restraint beds or restraint chairs – so cannot imagine what they look like.

Seclusion in single locked rooms, yes – but for the mentally ill only in the acute admission wards until medication took effect. In residential wards mentally ill were only ever secluded in case of recurrent, psychotic episodes – again, until more medication took effect.

IHC patients never stayed in acute admission wards – but were at times put in single rooms for up to a day as punishment for bad behaviour – and it worked like a charm. Our mentally ill patients never misbehaved, by the way.

We now have about 2000 mentally ill people in prison. Ill people should never be in prison.

In my opinion this treatment of our insane population runs counter to the United Nations Disability Convention, Article 15 – regarding freedom from . . . degrading treatment; and Article 25b – re providing health services needed. ANDY ESPERSEN Nelson