The Abilities of Man: Their Nature and Measurement
Menial Deficiency Bill.
As we go to press, there seems to be a reasonable prospect that the Mental Deficiency Bill, presented by Mr. Crompton Wood, will become law this Session. It has been considered by Standing’ Committee A, and has been ordered to be reported to the House. It must not be forgotten that the Government Bill last autumn reached this stage, but had then to be withdrawn owing to opposition. The new Bill, however, has met some of the criticisms raised against the previous Bill, and there has been time to dispel certain suspicions that appeared ill-founded, so that there seems ground for hope that the Bill, as amended, will be acceptable to the House.
We hope, in our October issue, to be able to give a summary of the important changes which will be effected by the Bill as finally accepted.
Annual Report of the Board of Control.
The Section of the Annual Report of the Board of Control dealing with Mental Deficiency for the year 1925 has been the subject of an interesting Memorandum adopted by the Society of the County Medical Officers of Health, which has received considerable attention in the medical press. The Memorandum has been published in the June issue of ” Public Health,” has been commented on in the ” Lancet ” (June 18th), and critically reviewed in the ” British Medical Journal ” (June 4th), and has been the subject of correspondence by Dr Tredgold and Dr Ralph Picken (” Lancet,” June 18th and 25th).
The Memorandum unfortunately is so hostile in tone to the Board of Control, and strikes one as so singularly biassed and violent in tone that it tends to prejudice the reader against the case it puts forward. The Board in their Report emphasised the desirability of trained and experienced medical men for the administration of the Mental Deficiency Act. Everyone must be in agreement with this. The Board suggests that the best method to secure such men is by the appointment of special officers for the Mental Deficiency Act. This may be dangerous as leading to a disassociation of Mental Deficiency from the rest of Public Health work. The Memorandum and the article in the ” British Medical Journal ” are both strongly opposed to this, and, if we may say so, the case for including the duties of the Mental Deficiency Medical Officer in the unification of medical services under the Medical Officer of Health are put far more cogently, reasonably, and convincingly in the latter article than in the Memorandum, with its distinctly ” peevish ” tone. Mental and physical health are accepted as part of one and the same problem of Public Health in the case of children by the establishment and development of a unified School Medical Service; then surely the work for adult mental defectives must not run the danger of being ” isolated ” and placed in a water-tight compartment, which may be the case unless the responsible officers personally agree to co-operate. The general supervision of the work by the Medical Officer of Health need not necessarily prevent the appointment on his staff of someone specially trained and experienced in this branch of work, nor need it prevent the consultation with an outside specialist for difficult cases. The quotations given in the ” British Medical Journal ” from many ol the leading authorities on Public Health are an indication of the realisation by more enlightened public opinion of the close inter-relations of mental and physical factors in health and disease, and anything which would tend to check the practical interpretation of this recognition may seriously delay the development of preventive medicine in the sphere of mental hygiene.
The tone of the Memorandum is also very bitter as to the work of Voluntary Associations, but the only comments we would make are the following. The majority of the paid posts in Voluntary Associations are filled by persons of very considerable training and experience in general social work, with additional training in work for the care of defectives. The Central Association for Mental Welfare is constantly urging the need of further training in psychological social work for all social workers, and more especially for those engaged in such special branches as mental deficiency, delinquency, mental after-care, psychological clinics, etc.
With regard to Health Visitors’ assisting in ascertainment and supervision of defectives, this is obviously a satisfactory way for a Local Authority to carry out its duties, provided such Health Visitors are given any training in the work. One Local Authority has realised very fully the necessity for this, and the senior members of the staff have attended special courses of training, and in addition special instruction is being given to any of the Health Visitors who are actually engaged in visiting defectives. We would, however, emphasise the fact that the training of a Health Visitor does not in itself fit a person to give that help and advice to parents on the special care to be taken of the defectives or the special methods which should be employed at home for their training and occupation.
In conclusion, it is to be feared that the tone of the whole Memorandum will be prejudicial to the fair-minded discussion of what are important principles of administration, on which those with a real desire to secure the best administration of the Mental Deficiency Act may well hold divergent views. An excellent opportunity for an unbiassed discussion of the problem has been lost by the most unfortunate method of approach displayed in the Memorandum.
Mental Deficiency in Oxford.
We have received from the Oxford Voluntary Association for Mental Welfare the following interesting- notes :??
An enquiry has lately been made into the mental condition of the children of persons resident, or lately resident, in Oxford, who had been medically examined and found to be feeble-minded. Thirty-six children of seventeen parents were traced Of these :?
Too young for any opinion to be given … … … … 3 Apparently normal … … … … … … … 11 Below normal, possibly deficient (in the opinion of teachers or guardians), but not medically examined and found to be deficient … … … … … … … … 10 Medically examined and found to be deficient … … … 12 Maintained and educated at public expense or by charity … … 25 In one case both parents had been medically examined and passed as feebleminded, but never certified : these people are still having children, but all except one are dead.
In the other cases, 1 father and 17 mothers were passed as feeble-minded : all were certified except two of the mothers, who are both living at home and still having children : both have large families already.
The ages of the children (not including the three who are too young for any judgment to be given) varies from 2| to 22. Three children are in Special Schools (residential), two are awaiting vacancies; two are certified under the Mental Deficiency Act and are under guardianship; five are in charitable homes; 13 are in Poor Law Institutions or boarded out under the Poor Law.
Two fathers (of five children altogether) are dead, but 19 of the children are illegitimate (children of 13 mothers) and their fathers are not known. SUMMARY.
Fathers.?1 certified; 1 medically examined and found feeble-minded; 13 not known; 2 not examined but obviously sub-normal. Mothers.?15 certified; 3 examined but not certified; 1 normal. Children.?19 illegitimate; 5 in Mental Deficiency Schools or awaiting vacancies; 2 certified under Mental Deficiency Act; 13 in Poor Law Institutions; 5 in Charitable Homes.
Appointment of Women Inspectors under the Board of Control. Miss M. M. McFarlane, B.A., Ph.D., late Assistant Inspector of Special Schools under the London County Council, and Miss Hilda Redfern, late Superintendent of Monyhull Residential School, have been appointed Women Inspectors under the Board of Control.
C.A.M.W. Courses.
The C.A.M.W. Courses have been attended with success, and the last of this year’s series will he held as a Refresher Course at the beginning of August.
Arrangements are being made for a Course for the Secretaries of Voluntary Associations. It is hoped that this Course will take place in London from December 4th to 9th, by which date Miss Fox will have returned from America.
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