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borne out by the fact that in 83 cases (42 per cent.) admission
to hospital was considered to be the service required. In about
19 per cent, it was considered that the individual would be better
off in a home. 16 cases (about 8 per cent.) were considered to
need mental treatment and were referred to the Duly Authorised
Officer, who took the necessary statutory action in respect of
13 cases. Of the 120 people who, it was considered, needed
admission to hospital or a home, 86 (72 per cent.) were willing
to go, and 34 (28 per cent.) were unwilling, at least when their
admission was first suggested. Most of them later became willing
as can be seen from the fact that in no case was it necessary to
take court action to enforce removal under Section 47.
The Follow-up.
The primary object of this survey was to record the follow-up
of those cases we had been called in to see, for in this we hoped
would be our final assessment of the success or failure of our
efforts. As previously stated we chose September 1st as the final
date, being three years from the time when the first case in the
series was referred to us.
45 per cent, had died,11 per cent,were patients in hospital
and 5 per cent, were in homes. 22 per cent, were still at home.
17 per cent, had left their old addresses and we were unable to
trace them. We have some difficulty in evaluating the above
figures. It has never been my contention that persons should be
removed to a hospital or institution just because they were dying,
and indeed most people would, I imagine, prefer to die in their
own home surrounded by the people who are nearest and dearest to
them. In our series of cases however, it must be remembered
that no less than 62 per cent,of the persons we were called in
to see were living entirely alone and for them when serious
sickness occurred there was little that could be done other than
to remove them to surroundings where they could be made comfortable
and be cared for.
There is considerable difficulty throughout the country in
obtaining admission to hospital for certain categories of old
people. By and large, most hospital staffs are not anxious to
accept patients who need little surgical or for that matter
medical care, for whom little can be done, and who may occupy a
bed for some very considerable time. It has been argued that if
such persons be admitted the essential work of the hospital will
be prejudiced and admission will have to be refused to acute
surgical and medical cases where immediate treatment is needed
and can effect a cure. The cases we are speaking of, however,
are not cases that could alternatively be sent to an institution
for their condition is such that they need a degree of nursing
and medical care that can only be provided in a hospital. It
is a fact that as our figures show, a large proportion (no less