View report page

85
status, married 50%, single 47%, other 3%. There are also 30
under school age children who come to the club weekly. The
club attendances vary from day to day, averaging 60 on Tuesdays
and Thursdays, 30 on Mondays and Fridays, and 15 on Wednesdays.
As it is the policy of the club to provide facilities on the
group-work basis and as the objective is to give experiences in
social intercourse, it is not surprising to see from the above table
that there is a higher percentage of depressive and neurotic
patients. These two conditions respond best to treatment and
because their manifestations are not as "frightening" to the community
as some psychotic types of illness, they are able to show
some degree of communication and are therefore more readily
acceptable. There are two other factors which also contributed,
namely that (1) Bromley is a suburban area with a high percentage
of middle-class and semi-professional society in which there is
normally a prevalence of the "milder" types of mental illness,
and (2) Stepping Stones had tended to recruit those people who
would "function" in a group work setting, and as this required
communication and participation, we have tended to favour those
suffering from neuroses and depression.
The members may come to as many groups as they wish,
and may change from one group to another after consultation
with the social workers. Initially, after referral, the potential
member is interviewed with a view to placement in a group. The
previous and present medical and social backgrounds are taken
into consideration, as well as personality, interests and other
specific instruction on referral, before they are placed in a particular
group. Every effort is made to ensure that both the member
and the group will gain mutual help in their struggle towards
integration within the community at large. To ensure this, there
is regular consultation between individual members and the social
workers, as well as between the social workers and the group
leaders. This allows the professional staff to keep in close touch
with the members and the club.
At present there are 3 Consultant Psychiatrists, 1 Consultant
Child Psychiatrist, 1 Mental Welfare Officer (who has been
seconded by the Bromley Mental Health Department, and who
acts as Senior Psychiatric Social Worker), 2 part-time Social
Workers, 1 part-time Child Guidance Social Worker and 4
secretaries on the clinical staff. While some members of the
clinical staff are members of the Stepping Stones Club, the only
group where the staff attend is the Discussion Group. One member
of the secretarial staff is a member of 3 committees and is
also hon. treasurer of the club. The social workers attend all the
committees in an advisory capacity only, and have no voting
power.