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35
holidays of this nature and in addition some of the individual old people's
clubs have been sending groups of their members, perhaps by charabanc,
for a week or ten days holiday, and this has proved popular.
The Council decided early in 1962 to acquire a holiday home when
suitable premises could be obtained. For various reasons the Sussex
coast was regarded as the most suitable particularly the area of Brighton
or Worthing. Many hotels were inspected by me and a few of these were
inspected by a subcommittee of the Public Health committee. Unfortunately
suitable premises have not so far been arranged and the
seeking of suitable premises at a suitable cost is continuing. Meanwhile,
as will be described in more detail in the next annual report, the Health
Department took over from LOPWA in April 1963 the organisation of
holidays for old people with the exception of the special requirements
for handicapped old people.
(e) Laundry
As will be seen elsewhere in this report the Health Department
again carried out a very large amount of work in dealing with the laundry
of incontinent elderly people, a record number of 59,282 articles being
dealt with in this way. This appears to be a service which is highly
appreciated by the old person himself and sometimes even more so by
the relatives.
(f) Bathing attendant
A further method of help for certain frail and usually bedridden
old people was agreed to by the committee in October. This was the
employment of a woman to help with domiciliary bathing and cleansing,
to work primarily under the direction and supervision of the Ranyard
Nurses although she can be used for cases originating through the
Health Department office. The demands on such help are great and
at the moment the helper is confining her activities to a relatively small
area of the borough in the neighbourhood of Forest Hill. Some increase
in the services available have taken place in 1963.
(g) The handicapped
A particularly deserving group of the elderly comprise those who
are badly handicapped. Many of such have been housebound for years.
Some of them are bedbound and for these there is little that the Borough
Council can do, their care being mainly one for the welfare authority
and the local health authority. With regard to those who are not bedbound
but are housebound, the Borough Council has, as is indicated in
the paragraph above on the Saville, established two sessions a week
there and it is hoped that later similar sessions will be held at Burnt
Ash (and also at the Naborhood). One of the biggest problems is to get
the handicapped from their houses to the centre and we have availed
ourselves of the help of the London County Council as welfare authority
in this connection. The County Council supply specially adapted coaches
which incorporate lifts for those who are severely handicapped. The
amount of help the County Council can give however is limited but
the Borough Council was so seized with the desirability of helping the
handicapped that it was decided that the next Health Department van
or coach to be obtained would incorporate a lift. The type of lift decided
on was a Burtonwood tail-lift and the 13-seater coach concerned
was delivered in the spring of 1963.