Psychiatric Clinic Historic Overview and Projections for Future

INTRODUCTIONToday, when we celebrate the 168th anniversary of our Hospital, 75th anniversary of the official founding of the Department for Neurology and Psychiatry, 50th anniversary of the modern alcohology (50 years ago, the first club of treated alcoholics »Maksimir« and the Association of Clubs of Treated Alcoholics of the Republic Croatia were founded), 33rd anniversary of the existence of Clinic for Neurology, Psychiatry, Alcoholism and Other Addictions and 20th anniversary of the independent existence of Clinic for Psychiatry, we should point out its certain advantages and problems and give an overview of its historic role not only in treatment and psycho-education of patients, but also in education of medical staff (professionals) and scientific research in the field of medicine. As it is generally known, there is no successful health service nowadays without some professional, educational and scientific investigations programs. It is believed that in medicine, continuous education is required, because every five years, so much new knowledge and discoveries appear, that the medical studies should be otherwise repeated.Generally, medical science started developing more rapidly in the beginning of the nineteenth century and psychiatry followed that development. French revolution (1789), which proclaimed ideas of freedom, fraternity and equality, played an important role in the development of psychiatry and for the society in general. A part of these ideas concerned psychiatry as well, and so, under their influence, Philippe Pinel (1745-1826), who had been named the father of modern psychiatry, introduced human approach in mental hospitals and freed psychiatric patients from their chains. Only after the beginning of nineteenth century, the first mental hospitals were established and more human approach was applied, not only in taking care of the patients and maintaining their hygiene, but also in scientific studying of the diseases. The person who deserves most credit for that was Emil Krepelin (1855-1926), who was the creator of descriptive psychiatry and the first classification of mental diseases.All changes in psychiatry appeared during the period of the strong development of medical science. Eighth decade of nineteenth century represented a turning point in the development of Croatian medicine. In the year of 1874 the Medical council was established, the first law concerning medical care for Croatia and Slovenia had been passed and the University of Zagreb was founded. In the end of the nineteenth century, the Foundation hospital on Harmica was finished. Medical faculty opened in 1918. At that time, thanks to the Croatian Medical Council and later, to its journal »Lijecnicki vjesnik«, medical service of Zagreb and its medical school got ever more mentioned.FROM THE HISTORY OF CROATIAN PSYCHIATRYIn the times of the most important international and national events in medicine and psychiatry, »Bolnica sestarah milosrdnicah« was established in Zagreb (1846) and it always kept a place for mental patients as well. Besides that, psychiatric patients from Croatia were treated in psychiatric hospitals in Wien and Graz. Psychiatry in Zagreb and Croatia actually starts with building and opening of the Psychiatric Hospital VrapSe in 1879. Foundation Hospital on Jelaoic Square was opened at the end of nineteenth century and the first neurologic-psychiatric department was officially opened as late as 1919. It was led by Prim.dr. Ivan Hercog. When the Medical Faculty had be- gun working, the Clinic for Nerve and Mental Disorders of the Medical Faculty was established in 1921 and its first chairman was Prof.dr.se. Mihajlo Lapinski. It was believed that Dr. Poljak, renowned expert of that time would lead the Clinic after Lapinski, but he left Croatia in 1928 and went to USA, where he became a well-known university professor in Chicago. After Prof.dr. Mihajlo Lapinski had left, in 1929 and until the arrival of Prof. …