News and Notes
The C.A.M.W.’s Holiday Home at Rhyl
We have received from Miss Marion Brooks, a member of the Council of the. C.A.M.W., the following account of the Association’s new enterprise? at Rhyl. In the success of the venture, Miss Brooks has had a considerable share, for she has piloted it through initial difficulties and takes in it a deep personal interest.
The C.A.M.W. has for many years cherished a dream that some day it would be able to establish its own Holiday Home for mentally defective patients from Institutions in the North of England.* An opportune legacy enabled the Association to formulate a scheme and an excellent house?ap- proved by the Board of Control?was found ideally situated on the promenade at Rhyl, only one minute from the sea. A trained nurse with experience of defectives, has been appointed as Superintendent and is assisted by a domestic staff. There is accommodation for 33 patients in addition to the necessary supervisory staff and each party comes for a visit of two weeks.
The Home was formally opened on May 2nd and had a civic blessing as the Chairman of the Urban District Council performed the ceremony, sup- ported by several Councillors and permanent officials, as well as by a large body of interested friends. The Medical Officer of Health for Rhyl has kindly consented to be the President of the Local Committee which is under the chairmanship of Miss Marion Brooks, a member of the C.A.M.W. Executive Council.
At the time of writing, three parties of children from the Mary Dendy Home, Sandlebridge, Cheshire, and one party from the Calderstones Institu- tion, Lancashire, have enjoyed successively a fortnight of delirious happiness.
A second party from Calderstones is now in possession.
The days are spent joyously on the sands, playing games and digging and for such patients as are suitable, there are paddling and bathing and country walks, under the guidance of the local scouts and guides.
The improvement in appearance and general brightness is most marked and the children are constantly asking when they may come again. Out of the 99 who have already visited, only one young gentleman appears to desire any change. He would like to live there permanently but desires his own resi- dence to be transferred to Rhyl, because he prefers rooms larger than those we can provide!
Many enquiries are received for particulars of the Home and arrange- ments have been made for parties to come from Institutions under the Lan- cashire Mental Hospitals Board, and from Chester, Sheffield and Wolver- hampton.
Originally it was intended to keep the house open for six months of the year only, but with the reservations already made, it would appear that the necessity for keeping open continuously will have to be considered at an early date. With bookings assured until the end of October, the Committee feel the new venture has fully justified itself.
*Patients from Institutions in the South of England are received at Franklin House, Bognor, Miss Collington’s Holiday Home which is used by the C.A.M.W. The Home has been full since the beginning of May and there are no vacancies till October. C.A.M.W.’s HOLIDAY HOME AT RHYL Guide and Scout Conference, Starcross —————————————
The Seventh Conference of the Colony Section of the Special Tests Branch of The Boy Scout Association was held by the courtesy of Capt. C. W. Mayer, M.B.E., at the Royal Institution, Starcross, near Exeter, on Saturday, the nth May, 1935.
Letters of regret at their inability to attend, and conveying their good wishes for the success of the Conference, were received from Sir Lawrence Brock, Chairman of the Board of Control, Sir Hubert Bond, Senior Medical Commissioner, and Drs. Noel Burke, Tylor Fox, Fitzroy Jarrett, Macmillan, and Rudolf, Medical Superintendents respectively of Cell Barnes, Lingfield, Leybourne Grange, Great Barr, and Brentry Colonies.
Capt. C. W. M. Plenderleath, R.N., Chairman of the Committee of Management of the Royal Institution at Starcross, presided at lunch at which Dr Rees Thomas, Senior Medical Commissioner, was the guest of honour. The Special Tests Branch was represented by Dr Mary Andrews and Col. M. R. Strover, D.S.O., Asst. I.H.Q. Commissioners. There were 42 guests and delegates, including medical superintendents, superintendents and matrons, stewards and clerks, and an equal number of guide captains and scoutmasters of colonies for epileptics and mental defectives.
After lunch Capt. Mayer, who is the Chairman of the Section for the current year, read a paper on ” Handicrafts Suitable as Hobbies for Colony Scouts and Guides.” Instructive papers on the organisation and management of camps for mental defectives were received from various scoutmasters and guide captains, as well as a paper on the cost of such camps by Mr. James Troy, Steward of Coleshill Hall.
Superannuation of Teachers in State Institutions
The Board of Education have issued the following pronouncement: ? ” As respects periods of service on or after the 1st day of January, 1935, the provisions of Part II of the Teachers (Superannuation) Act, 1925 … shall apply to persons employed in the capacity of teachers in any institu- tion for defectives of dangerous or violent propensities which is provided by the Board of Control under the Mental Deficiency Act, 1913, as if such an institution were a grant-aided school within the meaning of the Act.” This satisfactorily adjusts a matter which has for long been a cause of difficulty and has tended to hinder the full development of educational work for defectives in State Institutions.
Lincolnshire’s New Institution
On June 25th, Harmston Hall Colony for mental defectives was opened by Alderman Sir Charles G. E. Welby, in the absence through illness of Lord Yarborough, Lord Lieutenant of Lincolnshire, and the 400 guests present were addressed by Mr. L. G. Brock, Chairman of the Board of Control. The authorities responsible for the Colony are the Lindsey, Kesteven and Holland County Councils, the County Borough of Grimsby and the County Borough of Lincoln, and ultimately there will be accommodation for 1,000 patients. To begin with, 250 can be taken, of whom 90 will be children.
Scottish Association for Mental Welfare
The Annual Conference of this Association was held in Glasgow on May 17th and was attended by a large and representative gathering. Dr Crichton Miller gave what the Scottish Educational Journal describes as ” one of the most brilliant and challenging addresses which has ever been presented to the Conference of the Scottish Association for Mental Welfare,” his subject being ” The Stewardship of Mental Health.”*
The other principal paper was given by Dr Ivy Mackenzie, on ” Mental Defect as a Biological and Social Problem.” In its criticism of the Special Schools as at present organised and their inability to turn out children capable of competing in the labour market and of becoming self-supporting, the address was distinctly provocative and aroused considerable discussion. Mrs. Russell gave an interesting survey of the work of the Paisley Special School during the past 27 years, and of its successful After-Care Scheme. Amongst others who paid a tribute to the work done by Special Schools, were Dr Robert Krausse of Fife and Dr Kate Fraser, who has recently been appointed to the General Board of Control for Scotland.
Boarding Out in Wiltshire and Devon
In its 18th Annual Report for 1934-35, the Wiltshire Voluntary Associa- tion report the undertaking of a scheme for the boarding out of patients from the County Mental Hospital.
During the year, 29 patients, 4 of whom are men, have been placed by the Association under private care. Of this number, 25 have settled down happily, and only 4 have had to be returned to the Hospital owing to ill-health or unsuitability.
The Association has undertaken to find the homes and arrange for the removal of the patients. The Mental Hospital Committee allow 19/6 per week for each patient which is paid to the Association, to cover maintenance, medical attention, etc. Patients who receive no help from relatives or friends are allowed 6d. a week pocket money. Visits are paid regularly by the Social Workers attached to the Mental Hospital, and reports are sent to the Medical Superintendent.
A boarding out scheme is also being initiated by the Devon Mental Welfare Association in connection with the County Mental Hospital.
M.D. Acts, 1913-1927. New Regulations The Minister of Health has recently issued new Mental Deficiency Regula- tions to replace those issued on the passing of the Act in 1914. The new Regulations are shorter than the original ones, but contain relatively few altera- tions in matters of substance. Such alterations as there are, the Board of Control indicate in a Circular Letter accompanying the issue of the Regula- tions. The Circular also uses the opportunity of emphasising the chief points of importance in connection with the Act’s administration.
The Regulations can be obtained from H.M. Stationery Office, Adastral House, Kingsway, W.C.2, price 1/4. *Extracts published in The Lancet, 1st June, 1935.
L.C.C. Silver Jubilee Exhibition
At the Silver Jubilee Exhibition which was held by the London County Council at County Hall recently, a section was devoted to the work done by patients in institutions for the mentally defective and in mental hospitals.
In a press article on the Exhibition, H. V. Morton paid the following special tribute to this aspect of the Council’s work: ?
” The astonishing change of mind which has inspired the science of social service during the last 25 years is nowhere in this extraordinary ex- hibition more clearly visualised than in the section devoted to the mentally defective. There is a hall devoted to the work of those in London mental hospitals, and some of it is very beautiful… . The atmosphere of having committed a crime that once surrounded those of weak intellect, has been completely banished. They are encouraged to weave cloth, to make carpets, leather-work, to paint, to make toys, and generally to exercise their hands and their brains. To each piece of work is attached a label stating the mental condition of the worker… .
” I think that this mental hospital exhibition is the most interesting of all the L.C.C. exhibits because it proves that the mind behind our social services has been able to conquer the prejudice which Western people have always felt for the mentally unfit.”
Institute for the Scientific Treatment of Delinquency An interesting report of the first full year’s working has just been pub- lished by the Institute for the Scientific Treatment of Delinquency (56, Gros- venor Street, W.i.).
The Psychopathic Clinic, held in rooms allocated to the Institute at the West End Hospital for Nervous Diseases, Welbeck Street, has been success- fully developed and cases are referred in increasing numbers by magistrates and probation officers, as well as by societies and individuals. The total number of new cases during the year was 71. It is proposed to publish at intervals a technical and scientific journal under the title ” Delinquency,” the first number of which will appear in the autumn. The Institute hopes ultimately to establish a small Observation Centre for a trial period of 5 years, but for this purpose a sum of at least ^20,000 is considered to be necessary. European Mental Hygiene Congress The Third European Mental Hygiene Reunion is being held in Brussels on July 20th and 21st, and is to be followed by a congress of medical alienists and neurologists under the auspices of the Belgian League for Mental Hygiene. The first subject for discussion will be the boarding out treatment for mental patients, at which Dr G. Corberi (Milan), Dr F. Sano (Gheel Colony) and Dr J. Vie (Ainay-le-Chateau Colony) will speak. The openers of the second discussion on punishments and restrictions in the family and in the school will be Dr Heinrich Meng (Basle) and Dr H. Crichton-Miller (London). The last session will be devoted to a discussion on mental hygiene and the press, to which Dr O. L. Forel (Nyon) and Dr J. van der Spek (Rotterdam) will contribute.
Child Guidance Council
A course of lectures, discussions and demonstrations in child psychology will be held from July 30th to August 9th, 1935, at the Institute of Medical Psychology, Malet Place, London, W.C.i, and will be followed by an additional course on dietetics, to be held from August 12th to 14th.
The lecturers will deal in a practical way with the application of recent knowledge of child psychology in the handling of children, especially in schools and residential homes, and will arrange discussions on common nervous con- ditions and behaviour difficulties. The section on dietetics will deal with catering in schools and with the connections between diet and behaviour.
The fee for the course on child psychology will be ?1 us. 6d., and for the course in dietetics 10s. 6d. Further details may be obtained from the secretary of the Child Guidance Council, Woburn House, Upper Woburn Place, London, W.C.i.
Staffordshire Association for Mental Welfare
As we go to press, an announcement reaches us of a Study Week which the Staffordshire Association proposes to hold from October 7th to nth, 1935. The Week is intended for those engaged in the teaching and training of mental defectives in Institutions, Special Schools and Class and Occupation Centres, and will comprise Lectures and Classes in handicrafts, physical training, rhythmics, etc., with a special course in Percussion Band work. Forms of application can be obtained from the Secretary, Staffordshire Association for Mental Welfare, Barclay’s Bank Chambers, Stafford, and should be completed not later than September 21st. A fee of One Guinea will be charged for the Course.
Obituary
We much regret to record the death on June 7th of Dr John Hall Morton, medical officer and governor of Holloway Prison. Born in 1883 in Limerick, he received his medical education at the University of Dublin, and spent almost the whole of his professional life in the prison service. After periods of office at Borstal and Aylesbury, he was appointed 14 years ago to Holloway, where he earned a reputation for his humane and enlightened administration. He was a recognised authority on alcoholism and held strong views on the futility of short sentences for turbulent alcoholics, advocating the institution of colonies in which inebriates could be made self-supporting. Dr Morton served on the Council of the C.A.M.W. as one of the representatives of H.M. Prison Commissioners.
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