Better Court Than Coroners : Memoirs of a Duty of Care - v. 1

Barone Hopper's comprehensive work, on psychiatric care over the last hundred years, is based on a working lifetime's involvement with those who have passed through the asylums and mental hospitals of Sussex.

The book, teeming with characters, is based chiefly on decades of recording the memories of staff and patients; from psychiatrists, therapists, nurses and pharmacists, through administrators, clerks, ward orderlies, cooks and cleaners to the patients the system was designed to serve.

Hopper introduces his own vivid memories, supported by a wealth of research, and includes a detailed study of one particular West Sussex institution, Graylingwell.

He explores the sometimes dramatic history of this Victorian-built hospital, as it adapted over the years to changing duty-of-care philosophies.

The book is lavishly illustrated, with many photographs in colour, and includes a wealth of maps, contemporary accounts, hospital surveys and personal testimonies.

It captures a world which no longer exists, but whose themes still echo for today's mental healthcare professionals.