Early Medical Statistics on Treatment of the Insane, 1866

JF Ptak Science Books    Post 2465

Dr. Edward Jarvis (1803-1884) conducted a study¹ in 1866 to determine how much a factor distance from an "insane hospital" was in regards to people using the facility. It sounds like an obvious-enough question with a probably-obvious answer, but these things are really never so until someone actually looks at the data and extracts an answer.  And so Dr. Jarvis performed this function, answering the question once and for all that yes, indeed, the further away you are from a facility the less likely you are going to be to use it.  

For example, in my own state of North Carolina, Dr. Jarvis breaks down the rather long and narrow state into five sections, and then lists the number of people per section making use of the state facility in Raleigh.  

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The findings by section and distance as follows:

•  I, Wake county, including Raleigh; 1 in 4,875 residents used the state hospital
• II, 50 miles distant; 1 in 6,433
• III, 50-100 miles "from the asylum"; 1 in 9,707.
• IV, 100-150 miles from Raleigh; 1 in 10,982
• V, 150-250 (+) miles; 1 in 45,790.

This is pretty much consistent with the few other states that I checked.

Jarvis conducted another study that also conclusively stated that the closer people are to an asylum that the more they are subjected to the idea of being able to help/cure the people attending the institution.  

Jarvis had a few pages of analysis at the end, establishing a "law of nearness" on the use of facilities. He established that just because the institution is equally available to all (white) people doesn't mean that it will be used equally by all.  He suggested that institutions be established in different sections of the state to help make it possible for all people in a state to use the state asylum.  

Again, something isn't obvious and correct until it is. 

This was some early and instructive medical statistics work conducted by Jarvis, who in addition to being an M.D. served from 1852 to 1884 as president of the American Statistical Association.  He completed this survey not long after having tabulated the national statistics of mortality for the Eight U.S. Census (of 1860).  

Notes 

1. JARVIS, Edward, M.D. "Influence of Distance from and Nearness to an Insane Hospital on its Use by the People." Offprint from the American Journal of Insanity, XXII, January 1866, pp 361-406. This publication paginated 1-46.