Winnebago Mental Health Institute
Encyclopedia
Winnebago Mental Health Institute, formerly the Winnebago State Hospital, is a psychiatric hospital
in Oshkosh, Wisconsin
, United States within the unincorporated community of Winnebago, Wisconsin
.
, a style of mental asylum design advocated by Philadelphia psychiatrist Thomas Story Kirkbride
in the mid-19th century. The hospital was the object of a competition between Green Bay
and Oshkosh
in 1870. The voters in the area approved an expenditure of $16,700 to begin construction.
Construction first began for the institute in 1871. It opened in 1873 as the Northern Hospital for the Insane, with the first patient admitted on April 21, 1873. The building was completed on November 11, 1875, with a capacity of 500 beds.
In recent years, the institute has undergone renovations to reduce the opportunities for patients to commit suicide, but the renovations were later criticized as inadequate.
In 2007, a newspaper reported that there had been three deaths and a rape at the hospital in a two-year period.
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
in Oshkosh, Wisconsin
Oshkosh, Wisconsin
As of the census of 2000, there were 62,916 people, 24,082 households, and 13,654 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,662.2 people per square mile . There were 25,420 housing units at an average density of 1,075.6 per square mile...
, United States within the unincorporated community of Winnebago, Wisconsin
Winnebago, Wisconsin
Winnebago is an unincorporated community in the town of Oshkosh in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located just outside of the northeast edge of the city of Oshkosh. The Winnebago Mental Health Institute is located in Winnebago. The Zip Code is: 54985. U.S...
.
History
The Winnebago State Hospital was one of several 19th-century psychiatric hospitals in the United States built on the Kirkbride PlanKirkbride Plan
The Kirkbride Plan refers to a system of mental asylum design advocated by Philadelphia psychiatrist Thomas Story Kirkbride in the mid-19th century.-History:The establishment of state mental hospitals in the U.S...
, a style of mental asylum design advocated by Philadelphia psychiatrist Thomas Story Kirkbride
Thomas Story Kirkbride
Thomas Story Kirkbride was a physician, advocate for the mentally ill, and founder of the Association of Medical Superintendents of American Institutions for the Insane , a precursor to the American Psychiatric Association.-Early career:Born into a Quaker family in Morrisville, Pennsylvania,...
in the mid-19th century. The hospital was the object of a competition between Green Bay
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
and Oshkosh
Oshkosh, Wisconsin
As of the census of 2000, there were 62,916 people, 24,082 households, and 13,654 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,662.2 people per square mile . There were 25,420 housing units at an average density of 1,075.6 per square mile...
in 1870. The voters in the area approved an expenditure of $16,700 to begin construction.
Construction first began for the institute in 1871. It opened in 1873 as the Northern Hospital for the Insane, with the first patient admitted on April 21, 1873. The building was completed on November 11, 1875, with a capacity of 500 beds.
In recent years, the institute has undergone renovations to reduce the opportunities for patients to commit suicide, but the renovations were later criticized as inadequate.
In 2007, a newspaper reported that there had been three deaths and a rape at the hospital in a two-year period.