THURSDAY, MAY 21, 1987
MORE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES PLANNED
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THE PRESENT SITUATION OF OVERCROWDING IN MENTAL HOSPITALS WILL BE GRADUALLY IMPROVED IN THE NEXT TEN YEARS WITH THE PROVISION OF MORE BEDS AND DAY PLACES.
THE MEDICAL DEVELOPMENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE (MDAC) DISCUSSED IN GREAT LENGTH TODAY (THURSDAY) THE DEVELOPMENT OF MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES IN HONG KONG,
IN THE NEXT DECADE. THE NUMBER OF HOSPITAL BEDS FOR MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS WILL INCREASE BY MORE THAN 2 500. THE EXISTING NUMBER OF BEDS IS 3 731.
IN ADDITION, THERE WILL BE AN INCREASE OF 700 BEDS FOR THE SEVERELY MENTALLY HANDICAPPED.
FOR THE MENTALLY INFIRM, THERE WILL ALSO BE AN ADDITIONAL 60 BEDS.
HOWEVER, LARGE PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITALS ARE NO LONGER PLANNED AND FURTHER PROVISION OF IN-PATIENT PSYCHIATRIC SERVICES WILL BE INTEGRATED WITH GENERAL HOSPITALS ON A REGIONAL BASIS.
THIS WILL OBVIATE THE STIGMA OF HAVING TO STAY IN A MENTAL HOSPITAL, SPEED UP REHABILITATION AND ALLOW EARLY INTEGRATION OF THE PATIENT BACK INTO THE COMMUNITY.
IT WAS BELIEVED THAT, WHERE POSSIBLE, TREATMENT AT PSYCHIATRIC OUT-PATIENT CLINICS OR DAY HOSPITALS, SUPPORTED BY COMMUNITY PSYCHIATRIC NURSING SERVICE, SHOULD BE PURSUED AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO HOSPITAL TREATMENT.
FOR OUT-PATIENT SERVICE, THERE ARE PLANS TO BOOST THE NUMBER OF CLINICS FROM THE PRESENT 15 TO 18. IN ADDITION, FOUR OF THE EXISTING CLINICS WILL BE EXTENDED OR REPROVISIONED IN THE NEXT FOUR YEARS.
AT PRESENT, THERE ARE 464 DAY HOSPITAL PLACES IN 11 INSTITUTIONS.
BY 1991, THREE OF THE EXISTING HOSPITALS WILL BE EXTENDED AND FIVE MORE WILL BE BUILT, PROVIDING AN EXTRA 322 PLACES.
TURNING TO PSYCHIATRIC NURSING, THE HDAC ENDORSED THE PROPOSED NEW PLANNING RATIO FOR PSYCHIATRIC NURSES IN HOSPITALS.
/POR DAY
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