NIH VideoCast - Architecture and Mental Health Treatment: A Look Back at St. Elizabeths in Washington, D.C.

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Architecture and Mental Health Treatment: A Look Back at St. Elizabeths in Washington, D.C.

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Air date:	Thursday, June 24, 2021, 12:00:00 PM Time displayed is Eastern Time, Washington DC Local
Views:	Total views: 324 (184 Live, 140 On-demand)
Category:	History
Runtime:	01:03:06
Closed captioning:	Check box to display CC outside of the video Note: You can drag the captioning window around and resize it
Description:	Office of NIH History and Stetten Museum Dr. Leavitt is curator at the Capital Jewish Museum, which will open in 2022. Previously she was an historian with the National Building Museum, where she curated an exhibit on St Elizabeths in 2017, which culminated with the publication of her 2019 book, "St Elizabeths in Washington, D.C.: Architecture of an Asylum." Note that from 1967 to 1987, the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) had administrative control of St. Elizabeths; and from 1989 to 1999, the NIMH Neuroscience Center and the NIMH Neuropsychiatric Research Hospital were located on the grounds of the hospital. St. Elizabeths, founded in 1855, began as an American model of mental health care. The first patient building, the Center Building, was constructed for white patients in the then-popular Kirkbride style, with wings extending from a central core to prioritize needs for people needing different stages of care. The campus expanded throughout its first century, hitting its peak population in the 1950s. Later construction went in different directions, including the Cottage Style and culminating in institutional, high-rise construction when the population became overwhelming and funding was low. St. Elizabeths, as the nation's first, and for some of its history the only, federal mental health hospital, provides a clear look at the changing nature of the U.S. government's role in providing mental health care for its citizens. For more information go to https://history.nih.gov

NLM Title:	Architecture and mental health treatment : a look back at St. Elizabeths in Washington, D.C. / Sarah Leavitt ; Office of NIH History and Stetten Museum.
Author:	Leavitt, Sarah. National Institutes of Health (U.S.). Office of NIH History, DeWitt Stetten, Jr. Museum of Medical Research,
Publisher:
Abstract:	(CIT): Office of NIH History and Stetten Museum. Dr. Leavitt is curator at the Capital Jewish Museum, which will open in 2022. Previously she was an historian with the National Building Museum, where she curated an exhibit on St Elizabeths in 2017, which culminated with the publication of her 2019 book, "St Elizabeths in Washington, D.C.: Architecture of an Asylum." Note that from 1967 to 1987, the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) had administrative control of St. Elizabeths; and from 1989 to 1999, the NIMH Neuroscience Center and the NIMH Neuropsychiatric Research Hospital were located on the grounds of the hospital. St. Elizabeths, founded in 1855, began as an American model of mental health care. The first patient building, the Center Building, was constructed for white patients in the then-popular Kirkbride style, with wings extending from a central core to prioritize needs for people needing different stages of care. The campus expanded throughout its first century, hitting its peak population in the 1950s. Later construction went in different directions, including the Cottage Style and culminating in institutional, high-rise construction when the population became overwhelming and funding was low. St. Elizabeths, as the nation's first, and for some of its history the only, federal mental health hospital, provides a clear look at the changing nature of the U.S. government’s role in providing mental health services for its citizens.
Subjects:	Built Environment--history District of Columbia Hospital Design and Construction--history Hospitals, Psychiatric--history
Publication Types:	Lecture Webcast

NLM Classification:	WM 28 AD6
NLM ID:	9918230800006676
CIT Live ID:	42142
Permanent link:	https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=42142

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