Psychiatric care at Terrell State Hospital
is nothing like Hollywood’s version
Psi Beta members take a memorable trip to the East Texas facility and come
away with a brighter outlook for the care of mental health patients
On Friday, Nov. 30, the North Lake and Brookhaven psychology National Honor Society, Psi Beta, took a field trip to Terrell State Hospital, the stateoperated psychiatric facility in Terrell, Texas.
This was a “first” for the student members. Mixed in with the excitement of learning about the workings of an inpatient psychiatric hospital and its inhabitants was a helping of apprehension and a whole lot of anxiety! After all, Hollywood has portrayed psychiatric facilities on the same level as they would a macabre haunted house with a massacre just waiting around the corner.
What was awaiting, truly could not have been further from the Hollywood “truth.” The following is the documented experience of Misty Sanchez, student member of Psi Beta. – Susanne Fred, psychology instructor and Psi Beta cosponsor
Photo Special to the News-Register
Psi Beta members took a field trip to Terrell State Hospital Nov. 30 and pose for a photo on the institution’s steps. Also pictured are Enrique Otero, sponsor, and cosponsor Susanne Fred.
Photo courtesy of Terrell State Hospital
The administration building at Terrell State Hospital. The facility has 316 beds and is a Joint Commission accredited and Medicare certified psychiatric inpatient hospital run by the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Before driving up to the hospital, most of us expected to see barbed wire, armed guards and locked gated entries. But there was no barbed wire and the fence surrounding the hospital property and buildings looked low enough to easily jump over. There were no “guards” either, restraining patients as one might see in the movies or on TV.
The grounds were very beautiful. It was like a self-contained community. It had a safe feeling. At that point, I don’t think any of us felt any fear or discomfort any longer.
Shortly after arriving, we met with Cheryl Delgadillo, who is in charge of volunteer services and the coordinator of community relations and development. Delgadillo gave us a brief history lesson about the hospital and some of its first patients, of course, long deceased. We saw relics from the past that included medical instruments used on patients when the hospital fi rst opened. Now that was scary! One of the most interesting things we saw was a patient log book. The log had diagnosis that today seems outrageous. For example, “Religion,” a lack of, or different beliefs from the majority, was a diagnosis that would justify hospitalization.
Another patient story from the late 1800s was that of a young woman who had given birth but was uninvolved with her newborn. That infant was taken from her and she was brought to the facility where she remained well into her sixties, until she died. Today, we call that Post Partum Depression and, thank goodness, we have a variety of treatments that will help the new mother during this difficult time.
Delgadillo also shared currentday information on the activities of the hospital. She told us about the holiday celebrations and how everyone – patients, as well as administrators and health care staff alike – enjoyed these festivities.
Then it was time for our tour, but not until we all signed a statement of confi dentiality. The purpose of this document was to protect the privacy and identity of the patients. We all agreed that we would not share any identifying information with the outside world. Our tour guide, Bill, could not have been more hospitable, or well informed. He had been with the hospital for thirty years! He told us that he never intended to work there, let alone work there for thirty years! He prepared us for our walk and said it wasn’t for the faint of heart. It wasn’t because it was a “scary” but because he was a fi erce walker. What an understatement! It was extremely hard to keep up with him.
We stopped into the hospital where Bill informed us that electric shock therapy is still performed on some patients. However, it isn’t as graphic or horrifying like you would see in the movies. Just another example of how the media distorts reality.
After the hospital, we walked to an area where relatives or out-oftown guests of the inpatients could come and stay for a few days. It was really like a hotel and didn’t feel like you were staying at a hospital. It was somewhat cozier.
The tour continued, but one of the things Bill did for us was set up a conference with one of the patients. I think we all thought we were going to see a man in his pajamas who ranted about irrelevant topics. When we actually met the patient we were in shock because he didn’t look like the actors on One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. He looked like someone you would see just any other day. He wasn’t parading around in his pajamas. He had normal clothes and was nicely groomed. He was excited to see us and enjoyed answering our questions. Overall, he was a cheerful and very talkative individual. Bill gave him a few necessities as an incentive for taking the time to talk with us. This made him very happy. It was amazing to see his face light up with a pair of new socks, because to him it was gold. Basic necessities we take for granted made the world to this man. It was quite an experience.
After our conference, Bill showed us a few places that the inpatients could visit so they wouldn’t be cooped up in their rooms all day. We saw the gym, theater and church. This concluded our tour. We returned to our vans with a new attitude towards Terrell State Hospital and the mentally ill. The whole tour itself was an unforgettable experience. In our minds, it put to rest the bad reputation that state hospitals get from the media and Hollywood.