大象传媒

During World War One the newly-built Maudsley Hospital on Denmark Hill in Camberwell was requisitioned by the military to be a Neurological Clearing Centre for soldiers suffering from shell shock.

The Maudsley was a subsidiary of the 4th London General Hospital, also on Denmark Hill.

During the early months of the war, shell shock was not a diagnosis used by the medical profession. Rather, it was the way soldiers themselves talked about how they felt when struggling to cope with the mental strain of artillery bombardment.

It was in The Lancet medical journal, in February 1915, that psychologist Dr Charles Myers popularised the term shell shock.

Whilst some patients at the Maudsley received controversial treatments such as electric shock therapy, the majority were allowed a chance to rest and recuperate away from the strains of the front line.

Many recovered enough to return to light duties but a large number would never recover fully.

Location: The Maudsley Hospital, Camberwell, London SE5 8AZ
Image: The outward ward at 4th London General Hospital, courtesy of IWM

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