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Slaves Or Patients?

Creator: Gordon C. Zahn (author)
Date: October 1946
Publication: The Catholic Worker
Source: Available at selected libraries

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In most cases patients assigned as "helpers" to the specialized employees are stooges for these employees -- doing the actual work while the others "supervise" and collect the pay. It is ridiculous to refer to this arrangement as ''occupational training". Once a specialized employee has trained a patient, to the point that his work is done for him in a satisfactory fashion, it is almost impossible to get that patient away from him for training in some other occupation, as would be done in a valid training program.

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Overworked

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The more capable and willing a patient is, the more he or she is overworked. One patient does practically all of the heavy work in a cottage having a large proportion of helpless patients; his workday every day begins at 5:30 AM and continues to about 7 PM. A young girl works as a nurse's aide in the clinic. After the morning treatment period is over, she (and the other clinic assistants -- patients, of course) wash the entire basement floor, offices and all, and at frequent intervals wax and polish the floor as well. This should be enough to be considered a full day's work, extending as it does from 8:30 to 5; but, because she is such a capable worker, this girl is kept in a cottage housing children much younger than herself, so that she may help with the care of the little patients before and after her duties in the hospital. In addition, after a thoroughly exploited day, she frequently cleans the attendants' private living quarters to earn a little spending money. Most of her friends and two of her sisters are at a different cottage that houses girls of her age; however, she is so valuable at the small girls' cottage that, in spite of her many pleas and the consideration her other work should entitle her to, she is consistently refused a transfer to that cottage wherein she rightfully belongs.

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It is to be admitted that many of these patients are overwilling and take great pride in extra responsibilities. Nevertheless, it should be expected that the people placed in charge over them will have enough sense to keep their work within reasonable limits.

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Instead the opposite is often true. One boy assigned to night duty as a helper on the hospital ward was observed by one of the administrative officers in the act of watching some other boys install posts along a roadway. Twice the official ordered the boy to "get to work" installing posts; twice the boy objected explaining that he was on night duty and was then on his "free time." The final result of confusing justice with this particular official's orders was that the boy was punished by being ordered indoors for the rest of the day -- that is, until he was due to report for his night duty!

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Maryland Readers Should Protest

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Many other injustices could be described here to further illustrate the extent of Rosewood's labor exploitation -- child labor exploitation, at that -- by the State of Maryland. It should be to the shame of every person that such a situation can exist. We can only hope that our Maryland readers will somehow express their objection to this unforgiveable state of affairs by writing their newspapers, their governor, their legislators to force corrective measures. It is sad to think that similar situations probably exist throughout the nation; it is to be hoped that if sufficient interest can be stirred up in the state named for the most-loved Saint in the Christian world, the effects would be felt in every institution in the land. For those who suffer in neglect and exploitation in our nation's mental institutions are our brothers. Thus far we have failed them.

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