Eastern State Hospital (Washington)

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Eastern State Hospital
Washington State Department of Social and Health Services
Original hospital building, dated 1908
Geography
Location	Medical Lake, Washington, United States
Coordinates	47°34′23″N 117°41′46″W / 47.573°N 117.696°W / 47.573; -117.696
Organization
Type	Psychiatric
Services
Emergency department	No
Beds	367[1]
History
Opened	1891
Links
Website	dshs.wa.gov
Lists	Hospitals in Washington State
Other links	List of hospitals in Washington (state)

Eastern State Hospital is a psychiatric hospital established in 1891 in Medical Lake, a small community 20 miles (32 km) southwest of Spokane, Washington. The original building was a Kirkbride Plan, and the current building has a similar floor plan with male and female wings extending out from the main building.^[2]

A facility for the mentally ill in Washington State, it was commissioned by the Territorial Legislature in 1886 to ease overcrowding at Western State Hospital, which at the time was the only hospital for the mentally ill in the Washington Territory. Over the years, the hospital has been the subject of a number of scandals regarding the treatment of its patients and the quality, and effectiveness of the care provided. As a result of these scandals, the vast increase in scientific and medical understanding of mental illnesses and the methodologies of effective treatment thereof, the hospital has undergone numerous transitions in the past century.

The hospital continues to operate today as a treatment hospital, far from its origins as a state mandated custodial institution and more in line with the modern understanding of how best to treat mental illnesses and disorders. It is accredited with The Joint Commission (TJC).