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to treat patients in psychiatric out-patients' centres and day hospitals rather than to admit them to Castle Peak.
113. Continued efforts were made to rehabilitate the long-stay and severely mentally disabled patients, the aim being to discharge them when they were fit to earn their living. Two wards were especially set up for this purpose. The usual therapeutic measures, including occupa- tional therapy, group therapy and re-education, were intensively used, but emphasis was placed on training in activities having a direct bear- ing on their work after leaving hospital. By these means, a number of patients were able to find employment while still in hospital. They were later discharged for full-time employment.
114. A variety of social and recreational activities was organized for the patients, who also had their own social club. Every ward has a television set.
115. Planning was underway for a new mental hospital at Lai Chi Kok, and the target date of completion was set for 1976/77.
Psychiatric Centres
116. The Yau Ma Tei Psychiatric Centre provides treatment for both out-and day-patients, including follow-up cases from Castle Peak Hospital. Its facilities include a child psychiatric unit. The day hospital was found most useful for the treatment of psychoneurotics and dis- turbed adolescents and children. On the Island, the Hong Kong Psychiatric Centre continued to see out-and day-patients, follow-up cases from Castle Peak Hospital, and forensic cases. In addition to these centres, psychiatric services were provided for the psychiatric observation unit in the Victoria Reception Centre and for the Tai Lam Centre for Women.
Kowloon Hospital Psychiatric Unit
117. The unit, located in the West Wing of Kowloon Hospital, was opened in July 1971. It aims to provide comprehensive psychiatric services in a general hospital setting. Because of shortage of staff, only the outpatients' section, the day hospital and half the in-patients' section, were operational. All types of patients, except those with strong suicidal and aggressive tendencies, were admitted. During their stay. they were subjected to an intensive treatment programme. Average length of stay was two weeks.
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Voluntary Mental Health Organizations
118. The New Life Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association, with the close co-operation of the mental health service, operates the New Life Rehabilitation Farm adjacent to Castle Peak Hospital for the benefit of patients requiring a period of orientation before returning to full social and economic activity in the community. The Association also owns two half-way homes and a sheltered workshop catering to selected discharged patients from Castle Peak Hospital. The Mental Health Association continued to serve a useful function in bridging the gap between the service and the community in 1971. The Irene House, a half-way hostel run by the Association for short-stay discharged patients from Castle Peak Hospital, was recently enlarged to accommodate 32 patients at a time. The Association successfully organized the 24th annual meeting of the World Federation for Mental Health in Hong Kong in November 1971.
Drug Addiction
119. The department maintained close liaison during the year with the Action Committee Against Narcotics (ACAN), other voluntary agencies and government departments connected with this work. Rep- resentatives from this department served as members on various sub- committees of the Action Committee Against Narcotics and participated in activities, particularly in relation to the treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts, and research and health education in the dangers of drug addiction.
120. A notable achievement of the Action Committee Agains! Narcotics during the year was the setting up of a central registry for drug addicts in the narcotics division of the Secretariat for Home Affairs. The aims of this registry were described as; to obtain information on The average success rate for institutionalized treatment, to estimate the total number of drug addicts in Hong Kong, and to compare the success rate of organized treatment with that of other forms. Government departments and voluntary agencies concerned, private practitioners, hospitals, and so on, which might have contact with drug addicts, were requested to forward the information confidentially.
INFECTIOUS DISEASES HOSPITALS
121. There are two hospitals which admit patients suffering from infectious discases-the Sai Ying Pun Hospital on Hong Kong Island,
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