State Hospital for Scotland and Northern Ireland
Encyclopedia
The State Hospital for Scotland and Northern Ireland (also The State Hospital or Carstairs Hospital) is a psychiatric hospital
providing care and treatment in conditions of high security for around 140 patients from Scotland
and Northern Ireland
who need to be detained in hospital under conditions of special security that can only be provided by the State Hospital. The hospital is located near the village of Carstairs, in South Lanarkshire
, Scotland
.
The hospital is run by the State Hospitals Board for Scotland which is a public body accountable to the First Minister of Scotland
through the Scottish Government Health and Wellbeing Directorate
s. They are a Special Health Board, part of the NHS Scotland
and the only hospital of its kind within Scotland. Following a restructuring of secure psychiatric services in Scotland a new hospital is being constructed on the current site at a cost of £60m.
The Board and the Hospital has around 700 staff.
Their aim is "to help patients recover sufficiently from their illness to enable them to be transferred to services closer to their homes. Where this is not possible, we strive to help them to cope with their disabilities, and to live their lives as fully as possible."
, and local villages such as Ravenstruther
. This alarm system is based on World War II air-raid sirens, and a two-tone alarm sounds across the whole area in the event of an escape. The system is tested on the third Thursday of every month at 1300hrs when the all clear siren, consisting of three 30 second blasts, sounds.
One infamous incident of a break out happened in 1976, when two patients Thomas McCulloch and Robert Mone, brutally murdered a nurse, patient and a policeman in a pre-planned murder plot.
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
providing care and treatment in conditions of high security for around 140 patients from Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
who need to be detained in hospital under conditions of special security that can only be provided by the State Hospital. The hospital is located near the village of Carstairs, in South Lanarkshire
South Lanarkshire
South Lanarkshire is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland, covering the southern part of the former county of Lanarkshire. It borders the south-east of the city of Glasgow and contains many of Glasgow's suburbs, commuter towns and smaller villages....
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
The hospital is run by the State Hospitals Board for Scotland which is a public body accountable to the First Minister of Scotland
First Minister of Scotland
The First Minister of Scotland is the political leader of Scotland and head of the Scottish Government. The First Minister chairs the Scottish Cabinet and is primarily responsible for the formulation, development and presentation of Scottish Government policy...
through the Scottish Government Health and Wellbeing Directorate
Health and Wellbeing Directorate
Scottish Government Health and Social Care Directorates are a set of directorates of the Scottish Government. They are responsible for NHS Scotland, as well as policies on the development and implementation of health and community care....
s. They are a Special Health Board, part of the NHS Scotland
NHS Scotland
NHS Scotland is the publicly funded healthcare system of Scotland. Although they are separate bodies the organisational separation between NHS Scotland and the other three healthcare organisations each commonly called the National Health Service in the United Kingdom tends to be hidden from its...
and the only hospital of its kind within Scotland. Following a restructuring of secure psychiatric services in Scotland a new hospital is being constructed on the current site at a cost of £60m.
The Board and the Hospital has around 700 staff.
Their aim is "to help patients recover sufficiently from their illness to enable them to be transferred to services closer to their homes. Where this is not possible, we strive to help them to cope with their disabilities, and to live their lives as fully as possible."
Security
The hospital has an alarm system that is activated if any patient escapes to alert people in the vicinity, including those in the surrounding town of LanarkLanark
Lanark is a small town in the central belt of Scotland. Its population of 8,253 makes it the 100th largest settlement in Scotland. The name is believed to come from the Cumbric Lanerc meaning "clear space, glade"....
, and local villages such as Ravenstruther
Ravenstruther
Ravenstruther is a small village in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, near the town of Lanark. In 1517 the lands of Carstairs and Ravenstruther were granted to William Sommerville. Ravenstruther was then known as Ronstruther. The village is home to a caravan and camping park.-External links:* *...
. This alarm system is based on World War II air-raid sirens, and a two-tone alarm sounds across the whole area in the event of an escape. The system is tested on the third Thursday of every month at 1300hrs when the all clear siren, consisting of three 30 second blasts, sounds.
One infamous incident of a break out happened in 1976, when two patients Thomas McCulloch and Robert Mone, brutally murdered a nurse, patient and a policeman in a pre-planned murder plot.
Controversies
- In August 1999, a convicted killer walked free from Carstairs after his lawyers exploited a legal loophole. Noel Ruddle, who served seven years for shooting his next door neighbour with a semi-automatic Kalashnikov type rifleWASR series riflesThe WASR series rifle is an export-oriented, semi-automatic version of the PM md. 63, itself the Romanian variant of the AK series of rifles originally from Russia. They use a Romanian made receiver, but lack the dimple above the magazine well the SAR series has...
in 1991, was given an absolute discharge by a sheriff because his mental illness was deemed untreatable. He admitted that he has not been cured and has also boasted about beating the system. A year after his release, Ruddle escaped a prison sentence for threatening to kill a priest.
- In December 2004, paranoid schizophrenic Michael Ferguson was allowed an unsupervised visit to see his fiancée at East Kilbride Shopping CentreEast Kilbride Shopping CentreEast Kilbride Shopping Centre is Scotland's largest undercover shopping centre at 106,030 sq m and is situated in East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, Greater Glasgow.The centre is made up of 6 different malls...
. He failed to report back to Carstairs staff two hours later as agreed. First Minister Jack McConnellJack McConnellJack Wilson McConnell, Baron McConnell of Glenscorrodale is a British Labour life peer in the House of Lords. He was third First Minister of Scotland from 2001 to 2007, making him the longest serving First Minister in the history of the Scottish Parliament...
ordered an urgent report into the decision to allow such a dangerous man to go on a public visit unguarded.
- In September 2008, it was revealed that there was a cost of £630,000 a year to provide the only woman patient at Carstairs State Hospital a ward to herself. Labour health spokeswoman Margaret Curran said: "This defies common sense. This cannot be in the interests of the NHS or the patient... We need immediate explanation and action."
- In October 2009, bosses at the psychiatric hospital were criticised by worried staff and politicians for offering inmates the chance to win £50 by solving a wordsearch which would help pick names for the wards, due to open next year. One insider said: "It seems strange that some of the most dangerous criminals in the country could end up naming the new Carstairs... Perhaps the victims of some of these violent criminals will share the concerns expressed by some staff that this isn't appropriate."
See also
- Scottish Prison ServiceScottish Prison ServiceThe Scottish Prison Service is an executive agency of the Scottish Government tasked with managing prisons in Scotland...
- Scots lawScots lawScots law is the legal system of Scotland. It is considered a hybrid or mixed legal system as it traces its roots to a number of different historical sources. With English law and Northern Irish law it forms the legal system of the United Kingdom; it shares with the two other systems some...
- Northern Ireland Prison ServiceNorthern Ireland Prison ServiceThe Northern Ireland Prison Service is an executive agency of the Department of Justice, the headquarters of which are in Dundonald House in the Stormont Estate in Belfast....
- Northern Ireland lawNorthern Ireland lawNorthern Ireland law refers to the legal system of statute and common law operating in Northern Ireland since Northern Ireland was established as a separate jurisdiction within the United Kingdom in 1921.-Background:...
External links
- The State Hospitals Board for Scotland - official website, at NHS ScotlandNHS ScotlandNHS Scotland is the publicly funded healthcare system of Scotland. Although they are separate bodies the organisational separation between NHS Scotland and the other three healthcare organisations each commonly called the National Health Service in the United Kingdom tends to be hidden from its...