Dr Norman’s tenure as Resident Medical Superintendent (RMS) at the Richmond District Lunatic Asylum(1886-1908) is noted for his progressive and compassionate approach to the care of people living with mental illness. Against a backdrop of continuous over-crowding, and the resulting poor sanitary conditions as well as a low staff: patient ratio, he championed enlightened changes in the surroundings and social lives of the residents of the asylum as well as being the first Irish doctor to publicly campaign against asylum detention as an effective therapy for all patients.
Read more about the life and work of Dr Conolly Norman here
Grangegorman Lives is a series of biographies of people whose lives influenced or were influenced by Grangegorman. The biographies are all sourced from Ireland’s Dictionary of Irish Biography: Ireland’s national biographical dictionary. Devised, researched, written and edited under the auspices of the Royal Irish Academy, its online edition is freely available at www.dib.ie
Image credit: By permission of the Royal College of Psychiatrists Archives.