inPractice - Fall 2019 - 15

HALL OF
HISTORY

Making Their Own Fun
Since the early days of nursing education, mental
health nursing has been a major part of every
student's preparation. Here's a look at some of
the experiences our graduates have encountered
over the years.
During their psychiatric rotations, nursing
students spent 13 weeks living at the mental
health facilities where they were learning,
far away from their family and friends
back home. Most rotations throughout
the decades took place at the Philadelphia
State Hospital at Byberry, Wernersville State
Hospital and, later, Berks Center.
Because they were so far from home and
entertainment or social events were few
and far between on the hospital grounds,
students had to make their own fun. Some
of it came through patient activities, like
teaching patients to square dance or joining
them for a movie screening at the facility.
Students also recalled watching cartoons
on TV all afternoon.

Other fun came from outings in the local
area, whether picnics, trips to the city or
visits to other area hospitals. Greenwood
Dairies, with its popular "Pig's Dinner"
(a massive 60 scoops of ice cream with
every available topping), was a popular spot.
Students also frequently played cards
for entertainment, especially pinochle.
At Wernersville, the entertainment included
a pool table, while the menu was limited
to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches
and saltines.
Because many nursing schools shared these
facilities for their psychiatric rotations,
students enjoyed getting to know other
students from different schools throughout
the area.
Another common thread of the student
experience was keys. Students were
responsible for carrying 16 keys (and a
whistle) and could later chuckle at the

then-horror of misplacing keys or
accidentally locking them behind a closed
door. Students in 1953 joked about how
locking your keys in the closet meant a
one-uniform wardrobe for the week.
Even the immense size of Byberry's
1,185-acre campus played a role in students'
memories. They noted the challenges of
missing the 6:30 a.m. bus to the "male side"
of the campus or getting lost in the tunnels
that connected the buildings on the grounds.
Regardless of where their mental health
rotation took place, alumni recall how the
experience helped them understand others,
and themselves, just a little bit better. Many
described the experience as being incredibly
fulfilling. Wrote one graduate: "The memory
will linger of the first feeling of assurance,
the first feeling of satisfaction, the smiles
of appreciation, the unspoken words of
gratitude and the eyes full of thanks." n

PA College / Spring 2019

15
inPractice - Fall 2019

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