View report page

the Mental Health Sub-Committee and some centre functions were attended by members
of divisional health committees.
National
Association
of Parents of
Backward
Children
Facilities were given to the Hampstead and District section of the National Association
of Parents of Backward Children to enable them to include sequences showing activities
of children and adults at some of the Council's occupation centres in a film they were
producing.
Staff—course
of training
Members or tne supervisory statt attending tne two-year part-time course or training
organised by the National Association for Mental Health (mentioned in the Report
for 1953) were given leave of absence to undertake periods of practical training in
centres and institutions of other local or hospital authorities, and students from other
authorities participating in the course spent periods at London centres. Practical training
will be completed early in 1955. Students from the Association's full-time day course
also undertook training in London centres.
Royal Commission on the Law relating to Mental Illness and Mental Deficiency
During the year the Council submitted written and oral evidence to the Royal
Commission set up under the Chairmanship of Lord Percy of Newcastle to enquire
into the existing law and administrative machinery governing the certification, detention
and care of persons suffering from mental illness or mental defect.
The following is a summary of the Council's recommendations to the Royal
Commission:—
Mental illness
(i) All persons of unsound mind needing compulsory removal should in the first
instance be admitted to an observation unit, which should not be a part of a
mental hospital.
(ii) No person over 65 years of age, unless so grossly disturbed as to require
immediate psychiatric care, should be admitted to an observation unit.
Psychiatric geriatric units, to which all such persons should be referred for
assessment and admission, if necessary, should be established. These units
should be linked with general hospitals.
(iii) Medical staff of mental hospitals should consider on the discharge of patients
whether they would benefit by after-care and, if so and if the patient is willing,
should arrange for such care to be provided either by the hospital or the local
authority.
(iv) Future planning of hospital requirements should include adequate provision
for neurosis hospitals or units separate from, although grouped for staffing
purposes with, mental hospitals. Meanwhile, patients suffering from neuroses
who need to be admitted to mental hospitals should be admitted without
formality and should, as far as possible, be kept separate from psychotic
patients.
(v) In order to remove fears in the minds of neurotic patients, endeavour should
be made to distinguish between neurosis and insanity.
Mental deficiency
(vi) Psychopaths and other social misfits should not be included in the legislative
provisions for mental defectives.
(vii) The present classification of defectives should be revised.
(viii) The inclusion of ' moral defectives' in the classes of defectives should be
discontinued.
(ix) The formalities for the admission to institutions of defectives whose parents
desire it should be reduced to a minimum and in such cases the parents should
have the right to direct discharge.
92