[Report 1948] / Medical Officer of Health, Cumberland County Council.

  • Cumberland County Council
Date:
1948
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1948] / Medical Officer of Health, Cumberland County Council. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    44/98 (page 44)
    (eiidcnt of Doveuby Hall Iloi5])ital helps us materially with our work in connection with mental delicicncy. This two-way liaison is, 1 think, working satisfactorily, and to the benefit of all concerned. The Authority docs not undertake any supervision of patients on licence from the Mental Hospital. (d) As noted elsewhere in this report, during the year the Cumberland and Carlisle Mental Welfare Associa- tion acted as agents for the Local Health Authority in respect of the ascertainment, supervision and home visiting of mental defectives. The rather complicated arrangements between the two bodies have been briefly indicated in paragraph (b) above. At the time of writing it seems likely that this agency arrangement entered into during 1948, may shortly terminate. It would be, I think, inappropriate in a report of this kind to let the occasion pass without recalling the indebtedness of the community at large to the work of the Voluntary Mental Welfare Association over many years, and, in particular, to the work of Miss Moclair, the retiring Organising Secretary. In common fairness it should be placed on record that Miss Moclair and her committee, and the social workers employed by the committee, have for many years been carrying on pioneer work in the mental health service at a time when such work was not popular, nor in the minds of the community as a whole considered to be of any great value. Now that the perspective has been rectihed let us not forget the pioneers. (e) No schemes of trainiirg have been initiated in connection with the training of duly authorised officers in connection with mental health work. The position in Cumberland is that the other and more exacting duties undertaken by the duly authorised officers in registration etc., are such that any consider- able employment of these officers in connection with mental health work is quite impracticable. Their duties are at the moment confined to dealing with cases of mental disorder who are brought to their notice, and the removal where necessary of .such cases to the mental hospital. They need no training in this respect becau.se they have dont this work for many years, and as has been indicated, they are not concerned with the other problems of the mental health service.