Princess Mary Ward

The ward was opened in 1985, created in an area previously used as a maternity ward on the lower ground floor of the hospital. The ward consisted of an eight bed dormitory, a two bed room, seclusion room, day area, quiet area (used as a smoking room) and an outside recreation area. It was classed by the Health Authority as an intensive psychiatric care facility, and as such the ward was intended for short admissions of patients who were acutely psychiatrically ill and not able to be managed on the open acute psychiatric wards. This remit extended to include patients within the criminal system from courts, prisons, and higher security units.

Security

As a secure unit the ward had double locked doors, with one door being locked before the other is opened. The staff all wore keys attached to their belts. The recreation yard had a Home Office regulation perimeter fence and the windows were barred (Ref. 2). The staff all attended training in control and restraint in order to effectively manage any violent incidents.

When opened the ward did not attract the title of ‘secure unit’, a title awarded by the Regional Health Authority, instead it was designated an intensive psychiatric care facility. As such staff did not receive secure lead (an extra pay allowance for working in a secure psychiatric environment of £1,000 a year).

Patients

The arrival of this secure facility meant that patients being cared for out of sector could be transferred nearer to home. The article in The Rotherham Advertiser, 16th November 1984 identified the transfer back to Rotherham of patients at St. Andrew’s in Northampton and at Rampton Special Hospital.

The unit did not only cater for local patients but took patients from Sheffield, Doncaster, Barnsley and Bassetlaw local authorities. As outside authorities had to pay to use these resources the unit made money for Rotherham. In 1991 the fees were reported as £900 a week.

Detention

Patients can only be held in a locked facility if they are held under the Mental Health Act. The Act provides for the care and treatment of the mentally ill. To be detained a person must be assessed as warranting detention by two doctors and an approved member of staff. The person must be considered a risk to themselves or others because of a mental health condition. Patients detained under the Mental Health Act can have leave from the ward at the discretion of staff and according to their detention status may be with staff into the hospital grounds or outside the hospital.

Staff

The ward had input from a multi- disciplinary team made up in the largest part by qualified psychiatric nurses and nursing assistants, but also included other disciplines such as doctors and occupational therapy staff.

Community Concern

There had been ongoing concerns raised by the public about the safety of having such a unit in the town centre. Concerns were heightened when, in November 1992, press reported on the detention of a man who had committed murder. He was detained to a ‘secure unit’ when sentenced at Leeds Crown Court.

Refurbishment

Princess Mary ward was refurbished and expanded in 1994, at the cost of £117,000. The number of beds increased from ten to fifteen, by extending the ward space to the floor above the original ward. Additional staff were employed. The alteration to the ward took into account the Patients Charter and provided individual rooms for all the patients.

Daily Routine

The patients ward routine was punctuated with meal times and medication rounds. There were televisions, stereos, and a pool table on the ward. Patients were encouraged to take part in occupational therapy activities and to take some exercise in the recreation area. The recreation area however was only very small and could only be accessed when accompanied by staff. On the ward all activities had to take place in the day area. Facilities were provided for occupational therapy activities off the ward. The old mortuary building at the corner of the hospital was used for wood work and other activities. Patients could only go there with staff and if they had the right level of leave approved by the medics.

Closure

Princess Mary Ward closed in 1999. The majority of the patients and staff were either transferred to a new facility, Wathwood Hospital at Wath-upon-Derne or to the acute psychiatric wards at Rotherham District General Hospital. Wathwood Hospital is a 60 bedded medium secure unit.

Forensic Psychiatry

Is the point where psychiatry interacts with the law. Forensic services vary in security from high security hospitals such as Rampton, Ashworth and Broadmoor to medium secure units such as Wathwood Hospital and then to low security environments such as Princess Mary ward. The settings give some indication as to the level of risk that can be managed at a particular unit. All patients in secure settings are held under the mental health Act, 1983.

References:-

• Ref 1 – The Rotherham Advertiser, 16th November 1984.
• Ref 2 – The Rotherham Advertiser, 27th September 1991.
• Ref 3 – The Rotherham Advertiser, 13th November 1992.
• Ref 4 – The Rotherham Advertiser, 16th September 1994.
• Ref 5 - www.nottinghamshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/our-services/forensic-services/wathwood-hospital/

Oxford Handbook of Psychiatry, ch.15 forensic psychiatry, Oxford Medical Publications, 2005.

- Melissa Peet -

• Introduction to the Wards
• East Ward
• Central Ward
• West Ward
• Co-op Ward
• Staff
• Memories of a Cadet Nurse
• Tickets to a Rock & Roll Concert
• Poem - When Nurses Look Like Nurses
• Nursing at Doncaster Gate Hospital in the 1950s
• Profile of a Nurse - Joan Allwood
• South Ward
• Founding