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All cases officially referred by the conference for specialist medical examination
or for child guidance are submitted to the school medical officer.
Cases officially referred by the school medical officer to approved child guidance
clinics are paid for at the rate of 15s. for the first visit, and 5s. for each subsequent
visit, and progress reports are called for at the end of each term. (Revision of these
rates was under consideration at the end of the year.).
During 1945-46,822 cases were referred to the case conferences. These cases were
disposed of as follows: 448 were referred for child guidance, 18 for attendance enforcement,
36 for medical treatment, 41 to special schools, 35 to special classes, 49 for
boarding education, 165 for other forms of treatment, and 30 for ascertainment as
maladjusted.
During the year additional special classes were opened for educationally backward
and maladjusted children.
The number of sessions at the Maudsley's children's department were increased
from 16 to 27 a week, and by the end of the year, in addition to the Maudsley Hospital,
there were 9 voluntary child guidance clinics approved by the Council for the official
reference of its pupils.
Mental Health Services
During the year Claybury Hospital was withdrawn from the emergency medical
services scheme, leaving only Horton and Sutton Hospitals still in the scheme at the
end of the year.
At the request of the Ministry of Health, arrangements have been made for the
establishment at Sutton Emergency Hospital of a special unit for providing in-patient
treatment for persons referred from employment exchanges and other sources, who
appear to be suffering from neurotic disorders. Hitherto such cases have been
referred in the first instance to psychiatric out-patient clinics, but, in the view of the
Minister, experience has indicated the need for a residential diagnostic and observation
centre, where more difficult cases can be assessed and tried out in industrial processes
over a period of about 6 to 8 weeks with a view to later treatment, training or employment
according to the ascertained need in each case. In the first instance,
100 beds (50 for each sex) have been allocated for the purposes of the new unit.
The year under review has seen the 21st anniversary of the establishment at
Horton Hospital of a malarial therapy unit. The unit was established in May, 1925,
by the Ministry of Health with the approval of the Board of Control and the cooperation
of the Council. The laboratory has supplied infective material for malarial
therapy to hospitals throughout the country, and at Horton Hospital alone a series
of over 2,000 cases has been treated for general paralysis of the insane, tabes and
latent neuro-syphilis. In addition, valuable research work has been done in connection
with malaria itself. In 1931, early researches on atebrin (now known as mepacrine)
were initiated and the foundations were laid for the prophylactic work which proved
so beneficial to H.M. Forces operating in malarial endemic areas during the recent
war.
The erection of the children's block at the Maudsley Hospital was completed
just before the outbreak of war, but had not been brought into use when the hospital
was evacuated. The block, when fully equipped, will provide accommodation for
30 patients. The first patients were admitted during 1946.
Volume XV of " The Archives of Neurology and Psychiatry " for the year 1946
is in course of publication.
The facilities provided at the Maudsley Hospital for post-graduate medical
education have been extended to include a scheme for the post-graduate training as
psychiatric specialists of medical practitioners demobilised from H.M. Forces.
It is impossible to say exactly how many persons joined the Council's service
as a direct result of the Hospitals Exhibition held from 21st to 26th January, 1946
Emergency
medical
services
scheme
Industrial
neurosis
unit
Malarial
therapy
unit
Maudsley
Hospital:
re-opening
of childrens'
block
Archives of
neurology
Postgraduate
training
Hospitals
exhibition