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15
Post Hospital Residential Unit (73, Wembley Park Drive).
This is an unstaffed hostel for six female patients recovering from mental illness.
The house was made very little use of during the first part of the year. It had been the practice in the
past to let a Shenley Hospital psychiatrist formulate the policy regarding the type of patient considered
suitable for admission. In consequence, it had been used for adolescents only. Only two such patients were
in residence from the beginning of the year up to June. At that point, I approached Shenley Hospital senior
medical staff, pointing out the poor use to which this unique hostel was being put. Better liaison between
hospital and local authority medical staff, together with a change of policy regarding age range of patients
and source of referral (i.e. not for the exclusive use of ex-Shenley patients only) very soon led to a much
improved occupancy rate.
Residents are going out to work and entirely look after themselves as a family group. Recurrences
of their illness do occur, but the relapse rate is not unduly high. Shenley Hospital is ever ready to accept
patients back, sometimes for the week-end only, just long enough to help a woman over a difficult period.
Occasionally, patients break down within a very short time of admission: it is not easy to judge accurately
in advance how an apparently well person will respond to the stress of community life and change of work.
Miss A.B. is a case in point: she suffers from schizophrenia and had been a patient in Shenley for many years.
For almost two years prior to her discharge she had been working in a chain-store, while living at Shenley
Hospital. This involved a long, daily bus journey. She seemed well suited to return to the community via the
shelter of the hostel. However, she began to deteriorate slowly, with short periods of unemployment, never
working for longer than three weeks anywhere. The signal for her re-admission to Shenley was when she began
to behave in somewhat bizarre ways, to the discomfort of the other residents. It appeared that her breakdown
was imminent and arrangements were made for her re-admission to Shenley Hospital.
In contradistinction, Mrs. C.D. also an in-patient at Shenley Hospital of long standing, left the hostel,
after only five weeks residency, to find herself private accommodation, and has kept well since.
Most of the ladies need a considerable amount of support and on average four professional staff call
regularly one evening a week each (two from Shenley Hospital and two from the Health and Welfare Department).
There is no interference regarding the cleaning and general running of the hostel, but individual residents need
help with personal problems—mostly connected with their employment. Patients not quite ready for work
attend the Day Centre at Bertie Road, where they receive guidance and encouragement.
Christmas time was a period of particular interest. Most residents went away to spend the holiday
with friends or relatives. It was felt that it would be unwise to leave the two remaining alone and they were
invited to Shenley Hospital as guests. This appeared a happy solution—all returned to the hostel by the New
Year.
The hostel was started as an experiment about three years ago, but by now it has become firmly
established as a suitable stepping stone back into the community for at least some mentally ill people. Almost
certainly, it will be even more in demand once the projected hostel for mentally ill patients at 9, Willesden Lane
is functioning, as this will be fully staffed. A patient's return to the community can thus be envisaged in two
steps: first the shelter of a staffed hostel and then residency in the more demanding family group of the
unstaffed hostel, before return to her own family or full independence is achieved.
The Day Centre for the Mentally 111, Belton Hall, Bertie Road, N.W.10.
This Centre continues to provide excellent service to some thirty men and women who are not able
as yet to return to full employment. They are referred by psychiatrists either on discharge from hospital
or from out-patient clinics. It is staffed by a head occupational therapist and two occupational therapists.
Cases are also accepted from contiguous local authorities, who take financial responsibility for their
patients.
The following report has been received from Miss Cass, head occupational therapist: —
"The Centre continues to serve the same area previously covered. This year has seen the policy of
occupational therapy projects outside the Centre more firmly established. Regular visits by all the staff to
the psychiatric clinics of Wembley and Central Middlesex Hospitals have now been established as well as the
regular visits to Shenley Hospital, keeping communication with the medical team within which we work as
close as possible.
Domiciliary visits this year have included patients who have needed transport to and from the Centre
for a considerable length of time. In all cases this has been provided with the aim of rehabilitating the
patient back to taking an active part in living and working in the community.
Referred of patients.
The majority of referrals are from Shenley Hospital and its associated out-patients clinics, and the
psychiatric units of Wembley and Central Middlesex Hospitals.
Number of patients referred January 1965—December 1965 96
(Male 40: Female 56) (8 re-admissions)
Number of patients receiving treatment on December 31st 1965 44
(Male 13: Female 31)
22 with a good prognosis to return to open employment (average age 33 years).
8 housewives referred for a limited period (average age 57 years).
14 would benefit from a period of sheltered employment (average age 37 years).