Eastern State Hospital (Washington)
| Eastern State Hospital | |
|---|---|
| Washington State Department of Social and Health Services | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Medical Lake, Washington, USA |
| Coordinates | 47°34′23″N 117°41′46″W / 47.573°N 117.696°WCoordinates: 47°34′23″N 117°41′46″W / 47.573°N 117.696°W |
| Organisation | |
| Hospital type | Psychiatric |
| Services | |
| Emergency department | No |
| Beds | 287 |
| History | |
| Founded | 1891 |
| Links | |
| Website | dshs.wa.gov |
| Other links | List of hospitals in Washington |
Eastern State Hospital is a psychiatric hospital established in 1891 in Medical Lake, a small community 20 miles southwest of Spokane, Washington. The original building was a Kirkbride Plan and the current building has a similar floor plan with male and female wings extending out from the main building. [1]
It is accredited with The Joint Commission (TJC).
Eastern State Hospital is a psychiatric hospital located in Medical Lake, WA, opened in March, 1891. A facility for the mentally ill in Washington State, it was commissioned by the Territorial Legislature in 1886 to ease overcrowding at Western State Hospital, which at the time was the only hospital for the mentally ill in the Washington Territory. Over the years, the hospital has been the subject of a number of scandals regarding the treatment of its patients and the quality and effectiveness of the care provided. As a result of these scandals, the vast increase in scientific and medical understanding of mental illnesses and the methodologies of effective treatment thereof, the hospital has undergone numerous transitions in the past century. The hospital continues to operate today as a treatment hospital, far from its origins as a state mandated custodial institution and more in line with the modern understanding of how best to treat mental illnesses and disorders.
In 1886, the Territorial Legislature authorized a Board of Commissioners to select a site for the establishment of a new hospital. After deliberation and hearings, the legislature designated Medical Lake as the site of the new hospital. This site was chosen for a number of reasons: it was on three rail lines and in close proximity to the train station in Cheney; citizens donated the land for the site; it had an ample drinking water supply, and at the time the lake was widely believed to have healing properties. By March 1891, the first building of the hospital was completed. At four stories tall, 400 feet long, and made of bright red brick, the Eastern State Hospital for the Insane (as it was then known) was hailed as “one of the most handsome and imposing buildings in the state” and “one of the finest structures on the Pacific coast” by observers. After staff hiring, the first patients arrived in May and the hospital has been in operation ever since.
In 1887, following a territorial legislative session in Olympia, Thomas H. Cavanaugh and Secretary Charles W. Clarke issued their summary report, the Report of the Board of Commissioners Appointed to Select a Location for A Hospital for the Insane in Eastern Washington to the Legislative Assembly. The report details the search and evaluation for a site to construct an insane asylum in eastern Washington State by the Board of Commissioners and how Medical Lake was the preferred location. The report is addressed to the Council and House of Representatives of the Territory of Washington.
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