VPRS 18419 Admission Index Cards

This series comprises of Admission Index Cards for Royal Park (Receiving House 1907-1909; Hospital for the Insane 1909-1934; Mental Hospital 1934-1954; Psychiatric Hospital 1954-1996) (VA 2845) relating to patients for the period 1935-1985. The cards record previous admissions to, and discharges from, Royal Park for each patient.The four-sided index cards (M.H. 27A) from the early 1960s onwards recorded details, including: patient name, year of birth (sometimes full birth date), date of admission, type of admission, dates and types of previous admissions to Royal Park, date of discharge or transfer to another institution, trial leave details, references to boarding out, dates of escape and return; address on admission and permanent address, marital status, occupation, religion; whether Australian born, migrant's country of birth, year of arrival in Australia, age on arrival, length of residence in Australia, whether naturalized; last school attended and standard achieved; professional or vocational qualifications, last occupation and whether still employed; name of next of kin, relation to patients, address and occupation.The older index cards that preceded the four-sided version include the following information: patient name, age, occupation, previous place of abode, type of admission (e.g. "R" = "recommended; "V" = "Voluntary" etc.), date of admission, how discharged (e.g. name of institution, recovered, "OR" = "own request" etc.), date of discharge, and remarks. The remarks column was used to record information such as to whom and where the patient was discharged, whether the patient had served in the military, the patient's religion, details of trial leave, the fact that the patient had died, whether the patient was a pensioner, details of escape and recapture, whether the patient was a migrant etc. The back of the card was used to describe briefly the patient's condition at the time of admission.