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(b) Lay Administration.
(i) A senior Duly Authorised Officer (supervisory) and three male Duly Authorised
Officers, all of whom are experienced in mental welfare, carry out various duties under
the Mental Deficiency, Lunacy and Mental Treatment Acts.
(ii) A full-time Psychiatric Social Worker, whose main duties are in connection
with pre-care and after-care work for mental patients.
(iii) Supervisor and Assistant Supervisor of Occupation Centre.
Clerical assistance for this service is provided, as and when required, from the
Health Department staff.
CO-ORDINATION AND JOPT USE OF OFFICERS.
Co-operation with the Regional Hospital Board, the Hospital Management Committees and
their officers continued to be maintained on the same friendly basis as in previous years.
The Physician Superintendent of Goodmayes Hospital and his staff are available for consultation,
if required, under the Lunacy & Mental Treatment Acts as also is the Physician Superintendent
of South Ockendon Institution under the Mental Deficiency Acts. Specialist advice,
if needed, is always most readily given by these officers.
The Council's Duly Authorised Officers supervise mental defectives in the area who
are on licence from institutions,and visit and report on home circumstances of defectives
in institutions when the question of licence, holiday leave, discharge, etc., arises.
The Psychiatric Social Workers employed by the Council and at Goodmayes Hospital
work In very close co-operation and this has proved to be of great value especially in
after-care work.
VOLUNTARY ASSOCIATIONS.
The Council does not delegate any duties to voluntary Associations.
TRAINING OF MENTAL HEALTH WORKERS.
The arrangements for the Duly Authorised Officers to attend Goodmayes Hospital and
other institutions for talks and discussions have been continued and are much appreciated.
The officers also from time to time meet their colleagues in neighbouring areas in order
to exchange views on the various aspects of their work.
PREVENTION, CARE AND AFTER-CARE.
Report on the work of the Psychiatric Social Worker
by Miss L.Walton.
This is the first complete year of a full-time Psychiatric Social Worker, and this
has enabled the work to be more fully developed and is still increasing. The nature of
the referrals has been most encouraging, and the emphasis has been on prevention of mental
illness. Half the actual referrals were "pre-oare" patients - people who have never been
In a mental hospital. Some of these should be receiving in-patient treatment, but are not
yet willing to accept this. The majority, mostly women, are experiencing difficulties in
their family relationships. Some of these have been helped by the P.S.W., and the occasional
case discussions with Dr.T.P.Riordan, Deputy Superintendent of Goodmayes Hospital, have been
invaluable to the P.S.W. Other patients were eventually willing to accept medical treatment.
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