Annual report of the Board of Control to the Lord Chancellor : 1957.

Date:
1957
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Annual report of the Board of Control to the Lord Chancellor : 1957. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    4/10 (page 4)
    Movement and Distribution oj Patients Details are given in the Appendix of the movement of patients during the year and their distribution at the end of the year. Nurses The information available about nurses relates only to those hospitals classi¬ fied as mental hospitals on the criteria set out in the note to the table below. These hospitals contribute approximately 95 per cent, of all beds for mentally ill patients in National Health Service hospitals. The number of student nurses in these hospitals continues to increase but there is still a serious overall shortage of nursing staff. Nursing Staff in Mental Illness Hospitals Grade 1956 30th September 1957 30th September Whole-time Part-time Whole-time Part-time Total: All grades. 20,358 6,937 20,903 7,176 Male 10,709 197 10,913 225 Female . 9,649 6,740 9,990 6,951 Trained Nurses: Total ... ... ... 11,040 1,650 10,938 1,643 Male . 7,319 138 7,200 158 Female . 3,721 1,512 3,738 1,485 Student Nurses: Total ... ... ... 4,026 — 4,566 — Male . 1,674 — 2,001 — Female . 2,352 — 2,565 — Others: Total ... ... ... 5,292 5,287 5,399 5,533 Male .. 1,716 59 1,712 67 Female . 3,576 5,228 3,687 5,466 Note.—These figures relate to hospitals:— (a) having at least 90 per cent, of their beds allocated for mental patients; and (b) having at least 90 per cent, of their beds allocated for mental and mental defi¬ ciency patients, the majority being for mental patients. Registered Hospitals, Licensed Houses and Nursing Homes The four hospitals!1) registered for the reception of persons suffering from mental illness provided at the end of the year a total of just over 1,200 beds. They were visited and found to be in their usual good condition. Following the closure of Laverstock House in January, 1957, 22 licensed houses(2) remained in operation at the end of the year. Of these, nine were licensed by the Minister of Health and thirteen by provincial justices. They were licensed for the accommodation of a maximum of 1,032 patients. Visits to them were made as required by statute and in general conditions in them were satis¬ factory: but one continued to require the attention of the Board. O Cheadle Royal, near Manchester; St. Andrews, Northampton; The Retreat, York; and Barnwood House, Gloucester. These hospitals are not vested in the Minister of Health, but are managed on a voluntary basis. (2) These are privately owned houses or homes in which patients are received for payment.