Social Welfare❘ 195
not care for them adequately. Elderly blind persons were provided with 825 places in care homes. For discharged mental patients, 1 509 places were provided in halfway houses and 1 407 in long-stay care homes.
Professional Back-up and Support Services
Support services provided by clinical psychologists, occupational therapists and physiotherapists are available to persons with disabilities in rehabilitation day centres and hostels. A speech therapy service is also available to children attending pre- school rehabilitation centres.
A range of community support services is available for persons with disabilities living in the community, including home-based training, community rehabilitation. day services, after-care services, community mental health intervention, and rehabilitation services for persons with visceral disability or chronic illnesses.
Residential respite services for persons with disabilities, occasional childcare service for pre-schoolers with disabilities and six resource centres for parents or relatives are also available. In addition, there were five social clubs for ex-mentally ill persons and 16 social and recreational centres for persons with other disabilities to encourage them to participate in community leisure activities.
Preparation Work for New Legislation to Regulate Residential Care Homes for Persons with Disabilities (RCHDs)
To prepare for new legislation to regulate the service quality of all residential care homes for persons with disabilities, a draft Code of Practice for these was devised for consultation with related government departments or bureaux and the stakeholders.
Financial Assistance for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) patients
The SWD administers the trust fund for SARS patients or families affected by this disease. By year-end, 1 120 applications had been received. Of these, 890 applications were approved, the cumulative payments for which amounted to $163.77 million.
Medical Social Services
Medical social workers are stationed in public hospitals and some specialist clinics to help patients with psychosocial problems and their families. Such patients are given counselling, financial and other tangible assistance, as well as referrals to rehabilitation and support services to help them recover and reintegrate into society. During the year, medical social workers dealt with around 171 000 cases.
Services for Offenders
Under related ordinances, the SWD discharges statutory functions and provides community-based and residential services to help people who have committed crimes reintegrate into the community and become law-abiding citizens.
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