asked the Minister for Health whether any progress has been made in treating mental patients in their own homes.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Mental Patient Treatment.
11.
The documentation which I circulated for the information of Deputies in connection with the debate on the Estimates for my Department for the year 1971-72 contained a table showing attendances at psychiatric out-patient clinics during the years 1959, 1969 and 1970. This table showed that attendances had increased from 14,612 during the calendar year 1959 to 150,244 during the year ending 31st March, 1970. The number of patients concerned in the 1970 figure quoted was over 41,000 persons. Admissions to psychiatric hospitals during the year 1970, including re-admissions, totalled 20,342 and of these 7,696 were first admissions. Comparing the number attending out-patient clinics and the admission figures it is evident that a great deal of success is attending the policy of endeavouring to treat patients outside hospital.
The development of out-patient psychiatric clinics has been in accordance with recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry on Mental Illness. The commission also recommended that provision be made for domiciliary consultations but recognised, however, that such consultations were wasteful of limited staff resources and could be undertaken only at the expense of out-patient and hospital services.
The commission also recommended that every health board should employ sufficient psychiatric social workers and social workers to meet the needs of its area. In recent years, employment of such workers has increased despite recruitment difficulties. At present, there are 21 psychiatric social workers, including six in training, and 23 social workers employed in the psychiatric services.
Could the Minister say what the difficulties are in the matter of staffing where psychiatric social workers are concerned?
Psychiatric social workers are scarce. They are very scarce in Britain and very difficult to get. Apparently, people who like to do social work do not want to take on that particular type of psychiatric social work. We have discussed the question as to whether, in fact, there should not be a grading between social workers and psychiatric social workers.
In view of the marked increase in the numbers attending out-patient clinics, has the Minister considered examining into the proportion suffering from minor mental illnesses which could be treated by the family doctor? Being referred to a psychiatric clinic might possibly aggravate a minor illness.
In my address to the consultative council on the future of general practice I stressed more than anything else that I wished the council to consider how far the general practitioner will be a psychiatric of first resort and I am awaiting the report of the council on that. I could not interfere in the amount of psychiatric work to be done by the general practitioner and that done by the psychiatrist.
Would the Minister make a recommendation for a greater orientation towards psychiatry in undergraduate training?
We have already done that. We have persuaded those responsible to give more psychiatric training. That matter is also under consideration.