Whitecroft Hospital training

[tmaccull]

Hi, finding my earlier posting about my SRN training at St Marys Hospital in Portsmouth I thought I would add some information about my RMN training at Whitecroft Hospital on the Isle of Wight. Whitecroft has since closed as a hospital and I recently viewed some photos of the now derelict buildings....including the very ward I worked in on my first day of training...Shakespeare ward. I commenced my training in 1970 and graduated in 1972. On graduation I worked as a staff nurse for a while and then was appointed as a tutor in the enrolled nurse programme at Whitecroft. I think the senior tutor was a Mr Ian McCann. The senior Nursing officer was a Mr Eldridge. I enjoyed my training and valued the support of the trained staff. I gained much valuable experience in the full range of group therapy, industrial therapy, occupational therapy etc that was in vogue then. My sense is that since those days the scope of treatment and therapy is now much more limited for patients with medication now providing the mainstay. There were some really dedicated and experienced staff there who taught me much about the essence of psychiatric nursing, about one-to-one therapy and group therapy. It had a strong Rogerian flavour that gave meaning to client centered care. I know there has been much criticism of the large mental institutions of those days but I saw much compassionate, deeply respectful care given. And when people were gripped in a psychotic crisis they had a place to go that would admit them, support them over their crisis, and then assist them to re connect with their lives. 
Anyway that is probably enough to provide some insights into my experience.
It will be interesting to discover if others who worked at Whitecroft contribute to this forum.
Best Wishes from Hamilton, New Zealand.
Tony MacCulloch

[wilfb]

Hello Tony,

Very many thanks for your post - especially for your so sensitive remarks about the respect once paid to mental patients. I can only concurr - I was trained (RMN) at Parkside Hospital in Macclesfield in the early 60's and have always been proud of the way patients were treated there - although I do know of exceptions.

I hope that you get a good response to your posts - www.schoolsofnursing.co.uk - to wich the board belongs, is not yet open officially. I hope that this position will change very soon - but meanwhile your posts are very welcome.

WB. Webmaster - Board Administrator.