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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1951
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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103
Child Psychiatry
By the end of 1951, the Council had three child guidance units, statistics for
which are given below.
The demand for the services of psychiatrists for children shows no sign of declining.
In the autumn of 1950, the Battersea and Earl's Court Child Guidance Units
moved to suitable premises, and on 1st October, 1951, a new child guidance unit
was opened at Brixton in the rebuilt premises of the old Brixton Dispensary.
Child guidance unit statistics
| Brixton (opened 1.10.51) | Battersea | Earl's Court | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of applications received | 61 | 57 | 102 | 220 |
| Number awaiting first interview at 31st December | 6 | 10 | 31 | 47 |
| Number interviewed and awaiting treatment | — | 14 | 2 | 16 |
| Number of Patients | ||||
| In treatment at 1st January | — | 22 | 25 | 47 |
| New | 45 | 53 | 80 | 178 |
| 45 | 75 | 105 | 225 | |
| In treatment at 31st December | 41 | 22 | 44 | 107 |
| Discharged | 4 | 53 | 61 | 118 |
| Disposal of patients* | ||||
| Seen but not treated (diagnosis and advice only) | 2 | 12 | 18 | 32 |
| Placed or placement recommended | — | 11 | 6 | 17 |
| Further attendance impossible | — | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| Transferred to other treatment | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| Unco-operative | — | — | 4 | 4 |
| Treatment completed | — | 25 | 43 | 68 |
| Total patients | 4 | 53 | 61 | 118 |
| Closing status of completed cases | ||||
| Recovered | — | 12 | 15 | 27 |
| Improved | — | 9 | 19 | 28 |
| No change | — | 4 | 9 | 13 |
| Worse | — | — | — | — |
| — | 25 | 43 | 68 |
* In the case of Earl's Court the disposal classifications are not mutually exclusive and a
patient may appear under more than one of these headings.
Brixton' Child
Guidance
Unit
The accommodation is most suitable for the purpose and the organisation is
of interest. As in the other units, the premises are provided and maintained by the
public health department, which also provides the secretarial staff (two) and the
two whole-time psychiatric social workers, while the education department provides
the two educational psychologists. In the other two units the psychiatrists are
provided by the regional hospital boards, but at Brixton, the Institute of Psychiatry
(Maudsley Hospital) has seconded Dr. W. Warren to be the medical director, with
a whole-time senior registrar to assist him. In addition seven postgraduate students
of child psychiatry work here for six months at a time, each spending four days in
each week at the unit. It is considered that the stimulus of working with a postgraduate
teaching hospital and the need to train more child psychiatrists outweigh
any disadvantages arising from changes in the staff. The following is an extract
of the medical director's report:—