View report page

34
The Easton House hostel for maladjusted school leavers has given accommodation
and support to eleven young men, two of whom are from Hackney.
In June a new warden was appointed and in July a deputy warden. Although
a psychiatrist visits the hostel weekly and conducts individual therapy,
one of the department's mental health social workers gives constant casework
support.
The Elfrida Rathbone Association's Hackney Branch conducts a social club
for educationally subnormal teenage boys and girls and the attendance is
usually about fifty but has been as much as eighty. The club meets in the
canteen of the Homerton Adult Training Centre weekly.
Towards the end of the year a Peter Pan home for twelve mentally handicapped
adults was opened at 117 Clapton Common. It is registered with the
Welfare Department in accordance with provisions of the National Assistance
Act, 1948. Although the practical facilities are reasonably satisfactory
there is no staff specifically trained to look after the residents of
the home.
The Hackney Society for Mentally Handicapped Children conducts meetings
at the Day Centre in Dawson Street. They provide many activities for the
mentally handicapped but in spite of much effort by the Society, only a
proportion of the parents of the mentally handicapped children living in
Hackney take advantage of these activities.
Mental Health Liaison Committee
During the year a Mental Health Liaison Committee was established for the
London Borough of Hackney to which everybody connected with mental health
activities was invited. The inaugural meeting took place on 25th September
and for the first time all representatives from statutory bodies and voluntary
organisations met to discuss problems. The committee has met at six weekly
intervals since and many problems and difficulties have been solved with the
result that the mental health work in the borough is running more smoothly
than before. This is not a policy-making body although matters of policy may
be discussed and the problem referred back to the respective responsible body
for possible action. This Committee is serving a very useful purpose in
improving the day-to-day running of mental health activities.
Dental Care
Great emphasis has again been made to the preventive side of dental care
but nevertheless the Council has started to increase its treatment facilities.
Trainees at Hackney Junior Training Centre and Millfields Special Care Unit
continued to have their teeth cleaned by a dental auxiliary. It was hoped
to engage a dental hygienist to clean the teeth of the adult trainees, but
because of the relatively poor pay for this class of worker, it was not
possible to recruit anyone.
By the end of the year a dental surgery had been opened at Homerton
Senior Training Centre. This has enabled the Council to treat some of the
senior trainees as well as the younger ones. One difficulty is transporting
children from the junior centres to the surgery, but this problem is being
investigated at present. The advantage of having a surgery within a centre
becomes immediately obvious. There were only 5 failures as opposed to over
500 attendances for treatment. The Council can be proud of the fact that 4.4
permanent and 3.2 deciduous teeth were filled for each one that was extracted,
which is very good indeed for this kind of patient. It is hoped to do even
better in the future. It is important to remember that once they lose their
teeth most mentally handicapped patients will be dental cripples; few will be
able to cope with dentures. Although 41 teeth were so bad that they had to be
extracted, at no time was a general anaesthetic needed.