«Psychiatry without shackles»: The formation of psychiatric care in Chernivtsi in late 19th – early 20th centuries

Abstract

The article presents transformation of medical care for patients with mental disorders and the establishment of psychiatric care in Chernivtsi in the late 19th century. Since the proclamation of Bukovyna as the crown land of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the provision of psychiatric care has changed. A psychiatric service appeared and helped to understand what a mental disorder really is. There was a transition to a scientific interpretation and a scientific approach to providing psychiatric care.The authors research and systematize information from various available sources, various articles, information messages, data from the state archives of Chernivtsi region, etc.It is known that the model of the regional psychiatric hospital in Chernivtsi was developed by the latest requirements for the construction of mental health facilities in Austria and other European countries of the time.At the beginning of the 20th century, the Bukovynian psychiatric hospital was extremely modern, equipped with all necessary equipment and the location of the wards in accordance with the standard of the time. Leading doctors were involved, as well as local ones, who had the opportunity to train at the University of Vienna and psychiatric hospitals. 15 hectares of land were allocated for the territory of the hospital, which was located outside the city on the territory of the former Strazagasse (Storozha) and Maisgasses (Kukurudziana) streets, now Mussorgsky Street.The opening of the regional psychiatric hospital in Bukovyna took place on May 1, 1902. The structure of the psychiatric hospital included 6 buildings, as well as the administration building and other technical facilities.The purpose of the article was to highlight the main historical moments of assisting persons with mental disorders in Chernivtsi in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Describe the historical chronology from the first psychiatric ward at the city hospital to a separate regional psychiatric hospital in Bukovyna. The methodology of the article is a synthesis of the historical chronology of psychiatric care as part of health care in Chernivtsi.The history of the emergence of psychiatric services in Chernivtsi has experienced ups and downs that corresponded to challenging conditions of the time. The transformation of mental service changed from the worldview and level of development of contemporary science. We can observe changes from mystification to the formation of psychiatry, as real modern neuroscience with an evidence-based approach and humane treatment of patients. Through the ages, different countries and changes in the understanding of the aetiology and pathogenesis of mental disorders, Chernivtsi remains the centre of mental health in Bukovyna.