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WELFARE
OLD PEOPLE
During 1964 32 cases of old people in need of care and attention were
brought to the notice of the Public Health Department
These cases are brought to our notice often by persons who feel the old
person should be removed compulsorily for his or her own benefit but not everyone
knows the extent of the voluntary and statutory aid which can be given to
an old person in need and so happily most of the time arrangements of some
kind can be made to enable the old person to continue to live in the way which
he wants in his own home or by patient persuasion over a long period to get him
into a frame of mind which accepts voluntary admission to home or hospital
Compulsory removal is a sad and undignified incident in the life of a human
being and must be genuinely and fully justified before being used In 1964
no compulsory removal of any old person was carried out
Dr Andrews, the Head of the Geriatric Unit at West Middlesex Hospital,
has kindly supplied the following report on the needs of the elderly to prevent
deterioration, cure sickness and rehabilitate
Brentford and Chiswick is one of the four boroughs included in theSouth
West Middlesex Hospital Management Committee catchment area for geriatric services
With a total population of 446 000 in the area the Unit has 202 beds
giving a ratio of 0 45 beds per thousand population although the Ministry of
Health recommended figure is 1.2 to 1.4 The results of this gross deficiency
of beds in the area are
1 Many ill elderly people die at home before they can be admitted
2 The delay in admitting patients makes their stay in hospital much longer
than it need have been
At present the Geriatric Department has wards at the West Middlesex Hospital
for the acute elderly sick and the rehabilitation of patients suffering mainly
from locomotor and neurological diseases besides having wards outside the main
hospital for long=stay nursing care cases In addition 350- 400 new patients
are seen each year at the out patient sessions held three times a week
A special feature of the geriatric service has been the Day Ward for patients
which was set up in 1962 Here patients are investigated and treated both
from the general medical and locomotor angles who need considerably more attention
than could be provided in Out-Patients and yet do not need a 24 hour "hotel
service" which is often psychologically disturbing for elderly people and should
not occur unless it is absolutely essential Unnecessary admissions of course
are wasteful as regards manpower and costs Last year 255 new patients attended
the Day Ward which is open five days a week
An attempt has been made with the services mentioned above to give a wide
range of hospital treatment for elderly people The scope of local authority
responsibility can and should expand over an even wider range The two most
urgent community needs are
(i) For day centres to be established which besides taking elderly people
direct from their homes would act as holding units" for handicappedpatients
discharged from respital who need care through the day and psychological stimulation
to keep them active both mentally and physically Diversional therapy
should be organised preferably by a trained occupational therapist but the day
to day work could be carried out by voluntary or untrained personnel
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