- 73 In one pavilion, the CPT delegation saw a young girl huddled naked under her blanket in a
dark room. According to information obtained on the spot, she had been in such a state for many
years. In another room divided in two by a high partition, the delegation saw a female patient kept
in a part of the room which was without proper lighting or ventilation. This was all the more
striking given that a suitably lit and ventilated room nearby had been used for storage purposes.
227. The material conditions of accommodation in the pavilions of the Leros Public Health
Establishments - which contain the great majority of patients - can fairly be described as miserable.
The precarious nature of the living environment was such as to be physically dangerous for any
infirm or elderly patient.
Pavilions VIII and IX in the Lepida complex and Lakki III, IV, V and one wing of VI may
be likened to large sheds for human beings, occupied by a mixture of patients of all ages and
categories: the mentally and physically deficient, psychotics, the chronically ill, epileptics etc.
These pavilions consisted of one vast room containing 26 to 44 beds in rows. The room was also
used as a dining area and had an annex with toilet/bathroom and food serving facilities. One
pavilion at Lakki had a dining-room separated from the patients' living area, but it was roofless
owing to bomb damage in 1944. It is also to be noted that most patients had no personal items.
Lepida XI (serviced by a team of outside practitioners under the Community programme)
was a two-storey building accommodating 200 patients divided into four sections of 50 patients
each. It was in an overall state of advanced dilapidation. Wardrobes had been installed in certain
dormitories and acted as partitions ensuring at least some privacy. The surroundings on the first
floor of the building were rather more suitable than in other parts, thanks to the efforts of the
nursing staff who had carried out renovation and decoration work on their own initiative. A
television and recreation room had been installed on this floor (while in other pavilions with
television, the set was often located in the staff area). The delegation was told that two prefabricated
buildings were under construction and would be allocated to the pavilion XI patients.
228. Patients at the Hospital for children with special needs were accommodated in dormitories
of 7, 10, 14, 16 and 18 beds arranged side by side with little distance between them. Few patients
had a bedside table. The dormitories were also used as a dining area (and sometimes for television).
In one section, the staff had taken the initiative to decorate the walls and provide curtains, as a result
of which the depressing atmosphere of the living areas was somewhat relieved.
229. The foregoing details indicate that patients' present living conditions are quite inadequate. It
should be emphasised in this connection that large-capacity dormitories are scarcely compatible
with the norms of modern psychiatry. Provision of accommodation structures based on small
groups is a crucial factor in preserving/restoring patients' dignity, and also a key requirement of any
policy for the psychological and social rehabilitation of patients. Such structures also allow patients
to be divided into relevant categories for therapeutic purposes.
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