London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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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 1963

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]

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In previous years these reports have expressed some concern about the number and high
proportion of compulsory admissions to hospitals under the Mental Health Act, 1959. In
1963 information was requested from all psychiatric hospitals drawing patients from
London of the total number of informal admissions of patients with a London address.
From the information received it was possible to estimate the number of admissions,
both informal and compulsory, from the Administrative County in 1963. On the assumption
that all compulsory admissions were made through the local health authorities' offices, it
was concluded that for every patient admitted informally through the Council's mental
health service, another eight to nine patients were admitted direct through arrangements
made between hospitals and general practitioners. It is this factor which accounts for the
apparent high proportion of patients admitted under compulsion—76.2 and 65.0 per cent.
respectively for persons aged under 65 years and 65 years and over, compared with 76.0
and 62.9 per cent. in 1962. Final disposal showed proportionately fewer patients retained
in hospital under compulsion—15-4 per cent. compared with 17.4 per cent. for persons
under 65 years and 5.2 per cent. compared with 4.8 per cent. for old people aged 65 years
and over.

Table: Table(iv)—Disposal of cases referred specifically for community care(a) Suffering or suspected to be suffering from mental illness

Table(iv)—Disposal of cases referred specifically for community care(a) Suffering or suspected to be suffering from mental illness

19621963
Hospital care:No.%No.%
Informal admission813.7733.4
Compulsory admission361.7331.5
Psychiatric out.patient clinic or day hospital622.9552.6
Community care of mental health service1,65676.31,63475.8
Other community care, e.g., Welfare or Children dept., general practitioner, probation officer, eti's843.9703.2
No further action24911.529013.5
No. of persons involved2,168100.02,155100.0
(b) Mentally subnormal and severely subnormal
19621963
No.%No. %
Hospital care715.3675.7
Community care of mental health service
Residential home, hostel, convent, etc.45. 1,078*80.349924*77.3
Attendance at training centre7778
Receiving visits from m.h.s.w1,054895
Other types of community care3324
Other community care, e.g., Welfare or Children's depts., general practitioner, probation officer, etc.513.8453.8
No further action14310.615813.2
Miscellaneous————
No. of persons involved1,343100.01,194100.0
*Number of person; some cases are being as well as receiving some other from of care.

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With both mentally ill and subnormal persons the pattern of care for patients referred
during 1963 remains similar to that of the previous year.
At the end of the year 2,664 (2,211) mentally ill persons and 5,076 (5,030) mentally
subnormal or severely subnormal were receiving some form of community care. Table (v)
analyses the various types of care being given, from which it will be seen that 7,324 (6,897)
persons were being visited by mental health social workers, 432 (341) were being provided
with residential accommodation and 1,671 (1,559) were receiving training at day centres
or in their own homes.
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