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manager thereof.
Detention Orders made in respect of these urgent cases
are limited to three weeks, and if it is necessary to
extend this time, compliance must be made with the original
requirements of Section 47.
The Medical Officer of Health was authorised by the
Council to make applications, where necessary, for the urgent
removal of persons to hospital, etc., as provided by the
National Assistance (Amendment) Act, 1951.
Although many cases were investigated during the year,
four only resulted in formal action being taken to secure
compulsory removal. Details of these cases are as follows:-
(a) An old woman of 78 years living in a basement
flat in the Pembridge Ward. She was suffering from senile
deterioration and incontinence and evinced symptoms of
mental disorder. The rooms she occupied were extremely dirty
and littered with old furniture, old clothes and rubbish. On
application to the Justice of the Peace, an Order was granted
for her compulsory removal to Kingsmead Institution, and this
was enforced. Subsequently, the woman was certified as
insane and removed to a mental hospital.
(b) An old woman of 86 years living in one room in
a house in the St. Charles Ward. She was extremely thin, and
dirty in her person, clothing and habits. The room she
occupied was in a filthy state and smelled offensively. An
Order for her compulsory removal to Kingsmead Institution
was executed and after the statutory period of three weeks
expired, the woman voluntarily decided to stay on as an inmate.
(c) An old woman of over 90 years living in one room
in the Pembridge Ward. She was bedridden, suffering from
senility and was incontinent. A relative was prepared to
arrange for the woman's removal to a nursing home, but she
refused to go. Accordingly, application was made to a Justice
who granted an Order for the woman's compulsory removal to
the Arundel Lodge Invalid's Home in Surrey. The Order was
enforced and the woman subsequently decided voluntarily to
stay on as an inmate of the nursing home.
(d) An old woman, aged 82 years, who occupied one room
in a house in the Golborne Ward. She was bedridden and,
although in receipt of various forms of assistance from
neighbours, the Home Help Service and "Meals on Wheels" for
the past year or two, her condition had gradually deteriorated.
She persistently refused to go into hospital and eventually
application had to be made to a Justice, who granted an Order
for the woman's compulsory removal to StcCharles Hospital„
This was effected and the woman subsequently agreed to stay on
as a voluntary patient.
Burial of the Dead
Section 50 of the National Assistance Act, 1948,
imposes on the Council the duty to arrange for the burial or
cremation of any person who dies, or is found dead, within
the Borough, where no suitable private arrangements are made
for the disposal of the remains. The Council have authorised
the Medical Officer of Health to make arrangements for the
burial of any person to whom it applies.
In the twelve months ended 31st December, 1952, the
Council became responsible for the burial of twenty-nine persons