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(e) Child Guidance Centre.—The Consultant Psychiatrist, Dr.
Helen Gillespie, reports as follows:—
"The full complement of psychiatrist sessions (nine) has been
worked during most of the year, Dr. W. P. Gurassa having joined
the staff at the end of January. In addition the full establishment
for play therapist sessions has been filled since October, and a total
of ten is now being worked by Miss H. Carr and Miss F. Low Beer,
who now share the work since Mrs. Barker and Miss Folkart left
the clinic during the year.
"We now have three full-time Psychiatric Social Workers, Miss
Joan Court having been appointed during October. There has also
been an increase in clerical staff. Mrs. E. M. Goody who was on
the clerical staff here during the last eleven years left the clinic in
October.
"More cases were diagnosed during the year (214 against 144
in 1957) and more were taken on for treatment by the psychiatrists,
chiefly in the Walthamstow area. The explanation is to be found
in the fact that in 1957 much psychiatric time was lost through
under-staffing. It is a matter for satisfaction that the total waiting
list for cases for diagnosis has been reduced from 155 to ninety-four.
"During the year thirty-one Court cases were seen. We are
always glad to undertake this work, but are unfortunately quite
quite often unable to see them under the period of three weeks,
except for very urgent cases. The number seen presents an increase
of such cases over those referred from the Courts during 1957(5)."
The following tables show the work of the clinic during the
year. Figures for Walthamstow cases only are shown:—