Supplementing the hospital facilities are psychiatric day centres, which provides wide range of out-patimt treatment, assessment, counselling and follow-up services on a regional basis. In addition they also operate day hospital places and provide other social, occupational and recreational therapy services for the mental patients. In the total management of a mental patient, equal emphasis is placed on the subaequent follow-up and after care of discharged mental patients with a view to restore them to their previous level of functioning and integrating them back into the community.
In 1981 there were 6,359 admissions to the mental hospitals, 546 to the various day hospitala and 169,018 attendances at the out- patient paychiatric centres. Medical staff were hard pressed by the increasing number of medical boards, and of referrals from courts, probation officers and police as well as the newly established Social Security Appeal Boards and the Compensation Boards for assessing emotional damages of sexual offence and other violent crimes. Clinical peychologists of the Mental Health Service conducted a total of 4,570 interviewa which entailed assessment and therapeutic function,
Severely mentally handicapped patients with some medical disabilities are cared for at the Siu Lem Hospital (200 beda) and the Caritas Medical Centre (300 beda). A further 700 heda of this category have been planned in the next decade to meet the increasing demand in this ares. Supporting paramedical treatment services were also incorporated into these institutions to enhance the functioning and well being of these mentally handicapped patients.
Physiotherapy Service
The physiotherapy services are required for the treatment of patients in acute and convalescant hospitals, in the maternity and obatetric wards, in the out-patient clinics and in the medical rehabilitation centres. They are actively involved in the rehabilitation of the physically and mentally handicapped in the various institutes and centree,
In 1981 a total of 152,413 patients were treated and 1,202,457 attendances were recorded. In July 1981 as the first batch of 38 qualified physiotherapists graduated from the Polytechnic, 14 were recruited into government service. With the anticipated rapid expansion of this service, the Polytechnic was urged to increase its training capacity to produce more qualified physiotherapists. It was planned that the student intake will be increased to 60 in 1982 and then 80 La 1983.
Occupational Therapy Service
Occupational therapy service is required in the treatment for people who are physically or mentally disabled. These patients undergo planned activities designed to restore wholly or partly their bodily functions, enhancing their integration back into the community.
In 1981, 15.980 patients were treated with a total attendance of 702,124, 41 new occupational therapist graduates were turned out from the Polytechnic in July 1981 and 33 of them joined the Medical and Health Services.
/Community Nursing
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Community Nursing Service
The Community Nursing Service extends continuing care to patients discharged from hospitals after suffering from acute illness and provides domiciliary medical care and support for the sick, the disabled and the elderly in their own homes.
The service was jointly operated by eight different agencion including the Medical and Health Department and was largely hospital basad. Domiciliary services are delivered through a network of some 30 sub-centree covering the various districts including the New Territories. To monitor the effectiveness of the service, a central consultative committee has been set up to evaluate the progress of the scheme and to ensure the uniformity of the service. During the year 11,434 new patienta were attended to by the 163 community nurses and more than 174,353 home visite were made.
Pathology
VI Special Servicen
The Institute of Fathology runs clinical and public health Iaboratory services for the Government and a consultant service for the Government-assisted sector. It also administers mortuaries and blood banka. In 1981 a total of 6.62 million examinations were undertaken by the institute representing an increase of 13% over the previous year. 78,838 units of blood were received by the blood banka.
The institute also produces and issues some types of vaccine to various hospitals and clinics including private practitioners. A total of 384,105 ml of vaccine were produced locally last year. Various virus studies on hepatitis, poliomyelitis, influenza and rubell are undertaken.
The forensic pathology service with its fully established forensic laboratory works closely with the Royal Hong Kong Police Force on the medical aspect of criminology and other madico-legal work.
The work of the service includes investigations in all homicides, suspected houdcides, deathe while in custody, traffic 'hit and run' and other Coroner's cased, The professional staff dealt with a total of 1984 autopsies, 843 clinical examinations and blood groupings and 1,372 laboratory examinations in 1981,
Radiology and Oncology
The Institute of Radiology and Oncology produces diagnostie and therapeutic services in hospitals and clinics. 897,775 examinationa were performed in 1981, an increase of 2% over last year'a figure.
It handles more than 90 percent of the patients requiring radiotherapy. The institute also operates a cancer chemotherapy service and cancer registry.
/A Radiation ............
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