The Treatment of the Insane without Mechanical Restraints

John Conolly

doi:10.1017/CBO9781139626361

Trained as a physician and alienist (psychiatrist), John Conolly (1794–1866) first published this work in 1856. It describes the abolition of mechanical restraints in the treatment of mentally ill patients at the Hanwell County Asylum in Middlesex, where Conolly worked as resident physician. He argues for a system of non-restraint to be implemented as standard in all asylums, focusing on understanding patients as individuals and treating them with care and compassion. Conolly had introduced at Hanwell an innovative programme for patients that was based around positive activities, personal freedom, privacy, good-quality food, exercise, and, most importantly, the absence of any physical restraint. Though controversial at first, Conolly's enlightened methods and writings helped further the cause of humane treatment. This work remains a key text in the history of asylum reform and changing attitudes to mental illness.

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Contents

Frontmatter
pp i-vi
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Contents
pp vii-xii
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PART I - THE LAST DAYS OF THE OLD METHODS OF TREATMENT
pp 1-34
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PART II - THE FIRST DAYS OF THE NEW OR NON-RESTRAINT SYSTEM
pp 35-135
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PART III - THE NEW SYSTEM IN PRIVATE ASYLUMS
pp 136-174
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PART IV - ABOLITION OF MECHANICAL RESTRAINTS AT HANWELL IN 1839
pp 175-289
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PART V - GRADUAL ADOPTION OF THE NON-RESTRAINT SYSTEM IN THE LARGE ASYLUMS OF ENGLAND, AFTER 1839
pp 290-342
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PART VI - PROGRESS OF THE NEW SYSTEM ON THE CONTINENT
pp 343-368
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CONCLUSION
pp 369-380
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The Treatment of the Insane without Mechanical Restraints

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Contents

Frontmatter
pp i-vi

Contents
pp vii-xii

PART I - THE LAST DAYS OF THE OLD METHODS OF TREATMENT
pp 1-34

PART II - THE FIRST DAYS OF THE NEW OR NON-RESTRAINT SYSTEM
pp 35-135

PART III - THE NEW SYSTEM IN PRIVATE ASYLUMS
pp 136-174

PART IV - ABOLITION OF MECHANICAL RESTRAINTS AT HANWELL IN 1839
pp 175-289

PART V - GRADUAL ADOPTION OF THE NON-RESTRAINT SYSTEM IN THE LARGE ASYLUMS OF ENGLAND, AFTER 1839
pp 290-342

PART VI - PROGRESS OF THE NEW SYSTEM ON THE CONTINENT
pp 343-368

CONCLUSION
pp 369-380

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