10 Worst Real Life Hospitals

10 Worst Hospitals in History

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re discussing the 10 Worst Hospitals in History.

For this video, we’ll be going over some of the most disturbing stories that have ever come to light surrounding medical institutions.

Were you aware of any of these hospitals, or their reputations? Let us know in the comments!

Philadelphia State Hospital at Byberry

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Full disclosure: the very nature of this video means that we’re going to be discussing some very dark and troubling events. That being said, the mind still boggles at the described conditions within the Philadelphia State Hospital at Byberry. For starters, the psychiatric hospital was very much overcrowded, with one source in 1960 recording that Byberry was housing over seven thousand patients. Furthermore, the state of Pennsylvania’s operations at Byberry were rife with mistreatment of these patients, including some illegally-housed criminals. Evidence of this mistreatment gained national attention in 1946 when photos of individuals crammed into its sewage-filled hallways made their way into “Life” magazine. Byberry continually failed state inspections right through the 1980s, before finally shuttering its doors for good in 1990.

Severalls Hospital

Colchester, Essex, England

The early years of Severalls Hospital in the U.K. didn’t make any sort of headlines with regards to any patient mistreatment. In fact, there were actually reports of hospital staff engaging in some heroic behavior during a World War II bomb raid, doing their best to reach and treat injured patients. Severalls didn’t escape its existence without controversy, however, thanks to stories of lobotomy and electroshock therapy performed within its walls. Specifically, these sorts of procedures would often be administered to persons who didn’t need them, such as women who were committed to Severalls against their will. Severalls did manage to come out the other side of this controversy, however, and continued to operate as a hospital until its official closure in 1997.

Topeka State Hospital

Topeka, Kansas

The Topeka State Hospital in Kansas also closed in 1997, finishing out an astonishing and infamous existence that first started way back in 1872. Topeka State was “infamous” for a number of reasons, one of them being persistent accusations of patient abuse and mistreatment. The hospital was also accused of housing at least one patient, a Danish national named John Crabb, who was there by accident, having never been found to be mentally unwell. Forced sterilization was also implemented at Topeka, under a controversial Kansas law that was enacted in 1913. Additionally, employees of Topeka State claimed that the working environment was poor, while a therapist named Stephanie Uhlrig was actually murdered by a patient while working there in 1992.

Weston State Hospital, a.k.a. Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum

Weston, West Virginia

The subject of overcrowding seems to come up again and again when discussing many disgraced mental health facilities. The Weston State Hospital was yet another that was accused of admitting far too many patients than could be realistically treated. This wasn’t the only problem on hospital grounds, however, as Weston also became infamous for its lack of basic sanitation. Patients were often housed in caged cells while awaiting care, and many of those admitted to Weston were there due to substance use issues, as opposed to mental health diagnoses. Many at Weston died from this combination of overcrowding and uncleanliness, while the building itself ceased operations as a hospital, and today exists as a tourist attraction with a new name: the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum.

Volterra Psychiatric Hospital [aka Ospedale Psichiatrico di Volterra]

Volterra, Tuscany, Italy

The Basaglia Law, a.k.a. Law 180, deinstitutionalized the psychiatric hospital system within Italy. This occurred back in 1978 and moved to pivot from such institutions towards more in-person systems of care. The Volterra Psychiatric Hospital, located in the country’s Tuscany region, probably would’ve closed despite Law 180. This was thanks to the hospital’s insidious reputation as a place where patients were routinely abused. Volterra still stands today in ruins, but its ghostly legacy is enshrined in shadows, cobwebs, and the memories of those who suffered on its grounds. Lack of sanitation, a prison-like atmosphere, and, yes, overcrowding tainted Volterra. Additionally, some housed here were admitted due to their political beliefs, with little-to-no contact with the outside world.

Athens Lunatic Asylum [aka The Ridges]

Athens, Ohio

The area that once housed the so-called Athens Lunatic Asylum now operates as a development area called The Ridges. However, paranormal enthusiasts often flock to the site, thanks to the infamous legacy of its one-time hospital grounds. The institution actually changed names often during its existence, and featured, at first, a communal existence that saw patients performing various labor tasks on grounds. These included such tasks as gardening or taking care of livestock. However, the legacy at Athens has also been tainted due to procedures and treatment commonplace at the time, that are now considered cruel and unusual. Hydrotherapy, lobotomy, electroshock, and more were commonplace. Additionally, hospital records contain an astonishing amount of women submitted to care for reasons such as epilepsy, depression, menopause, and “hysteria.”

Danvers State Hospital

Danvers, Massachusetts

The “Kirkbride Plan” is a phrase that comes up often when researching older hospitals. Its namesake, psychiatrist Thomas Kirkbride, designed the plan to promote construction that allowed for as much air and natural light as possible. Unfortunately, these good intentions offer little comfort to those patients that suffered at locations like the Danvers State Hospital. Lobotomies were allegedly commonplace, and Danvers, at its peak use, was severely overcrowded. Today, the legacy of this now-demolished institution can be seen with its ties to the Salem Witch Trials, and the horror fiction of H.P. Lovecraft, as well as its history of patient mistreatment. Danvers was built on ground once owned by Salem judge John Hathorne, while Lovecraft allegedly based his iconic Arkham Sanatorium on the hospital.

Pennhurst State School and Hospital

Spring City, Pennsylvania

Byberry wasn’t the only Pennsylvania hospital to receive a black eye for its tainted legacy. The Pennhurst State School and Hospital originally went under a different, more off-putting name: The Eastern Pennsylvania State Institution for the Feeble-Minded and Epileptic. Its mission statement as a place for mental health care was void almost immediately. This was due to Pennhurst housing many who weren’t there for any medical reasons, such as criminals and orphans. Pennhurst’s Chief Physician, Henry Goddard, was quoted as saying, “every feeble-minded person is a potential criminal,” while hospital staffers were routinely accused of violence towards those in their care. Conditions at Pennhurst were further exposed on a state and local level in 1968, thanks to a cable news expose by journalist Bill Baldini.

Bethlem Royal Hospital [aka “Bedlam”]

London, England

Bethlem Royal Hospital is the oldest facility on this list, with an equally ancient reputation for tragedy. Bethlem was founded in 1247, with historians placing its shift into a mental health facility somewhere around 1377. “Health” is probably the last word associated with Bedlam thanks to reports that many patients were treated more like chained-and-shackled prisoners. Others at Bethlem were simply allowed to roam the halls, regardless of their mental or physical state. The hospital was routinely filthy, having originally been built over a sewer. Waste was commonplace at Bedlam, many patients died of malnourishment and still others were made victims of cruel “treatment” procedures, including blood-letting leech therapy. Bethlem operates today in a much different fashion, but history remembers and marks its troubling legacy.

Federico Mora Hospital Nacional

Guatemala City, Guatemala

A BBC article from 2014 exposed the incredibly shocking and horrible conditions behind this hospital in Guatemala City. The Federico Mora Hospital Nacional was singled out by the article, which included a very frank interview with its director, Romeo Minera. Minera admitted that those housed in Federico Mora were being victimized and assaulted, some while under heavy sedation. The article goes on to comment on the inside as appearing “more like concentration camp prisoners than patients.” The patients are described as being barely clothed and often filthy, covered in waste. Federico Mora is also described as a dark “hell on earth,” with vermin living alongside patients, and sexual abuse a way of life for many unfortunate enough to find themselves within its walls.