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49
MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES
The Council's community mental health service continued to expand
during the year.
The Principal Medical Officer, Mental Health, who already sits on the
hospital's Medical Advisory Committee, was appointed to the Leavesden
Hospital Management Committee to serve for a period of three years, and
the Chief Mental Welfare Officer was co-opted on to the Committee of the
League of Friends of Shenley Hospital.
The arrangement whereby a Mental Health Clinic is held every
Thursday afternoon at the Caryl Thomas Clinic, Headstone Drive, continued
to operate satisfactorily as did the arrangement whereby the mental
welfare officer 'on call' out of office hours is called out by the duty telephonist
at Harrow Hospital.
One of the highlights of the year was Mental Health Week, 5th—11th
June, 1966. This Week was held with the encouragement of the Minister
of Health, and the active co-operation of all the voluntary bodies concerned
in the mental health field. The National Association for Mental Health
and the National Society for Mentally Handicapped Children as the
bodies primarily concerned have undertaken to promote a Mental Health
Week in 1968 to mark the International Congress on Mental Health to be
held in London in August of that year on behalf of the World Federation
for Mental Health.
In order to experiment with the best way to conduct such a Week
in 1968, arrangements were made to hold preliminary weeks in 1966 and
1967. The general theme of the Week this year was"Mental Health—Your
Concern". With the co-operation of the voluntary societies in this field,
i.e. the National Society and the Harrow Society for Mentally Handicapped
Children, the League of Friends of Shenley Hospital and the Friends of
Leavesden Hospital, together with both Shenley and Leavesden Hospitals,
the following events were held within the Borough and neighbouring
districts:—
An exhibition, open to the public featuring the work carried out
by the local authority, hospital and voluntary societies, was held
at the Granada Theatre, Sheepcote Road, Harrow. This was opened
by His Worship the Mayor on Tuesday, 7th June.
A folksong/church service with the "Ambassadors" for all
mentally handicapped children and parents was held at St. Alban
Church on 5th June.
A folk music concert at the Brent Town Hall with Julie Felix on
10th June.