HC Deb 16 September 1915 vol 74 cc154-6
31. Mr. ANDERSON

asked the Under-Secretary of State for War whether uncertifiable soldiers are being placed under lunacy control and sent to buildings attached to county asylums containing lunatics; and, if so whether steps will be taken to see that all mental and nervous cases due to the stress and shock of war are treated absolutely apart from the Lunacy Commissioners until definitely certified?

Mr. TENNANT

As I have previously informed the House, the soldiers referred to are not in any way dealt with under the Lunacy Acts. They remain under the control of the Secretary of State for War. Two of the buildings in which they are being cared for form parts of two county asylums, but they are completely detached from those asylums and the soldiers treated in them are in no way brought into contact with the inmates of the asylums. The importance of this is fully recognised, as is demonstrated in our method of treatment. Each case is the subject of special consideration by general physicians and neurologists and is placed under the care of the most appropriate specialist in the appropriate institution.

Colonel YATE

Will the right hon. Gentleman see that those portions of the buildings occupied by those men are not allowed in any way to be associated with the asylum?

Mr. TENNANT

Yes, that has been and always is done.

Sir W. BYLES

May I ask whether the soldiers are deprived of the protection which the Lunacy Acts afford to innocent persons?

Mr. TENNANT

I am not sure that I know what my hon. Friend means. I can assure him that the first part of the answer I gave to the question has been absolutely, adhered to up to the present. Whether it will be possible to continue to do so—that is, to refuse to certify in future—must depend on the accommodation and the number of specialists we have at our command.

Sir W. BYLES

My question referred to the fact that the Lunacy Acts impose certain penalties for interning people without proper safeguards.

Mr. TENNANT

Really that does not apply, inasmuch as none of these soldiers are certified.

Mr. W. ROCH

May I ask whether in some cases these soldiers are under the care of medical officers of existing asylums, who, though they may hold commissions in the R.A.M.C., combine those duties with those of the Asylums Board?

Mr. TENNANT

I dare say that may be true, but there are only a certain number of medical experts who are able to deal with these neurological cases, and, therefore, it is very desirable that we should have the best expert advice in these matters.

Mr. T. M. HEALY

Will inspectors visit these soldiers and inspect them the way they would ordinary cases?

Mr. TENNANT

No, because these soldiers are now under the charge and control of the Secretary of State for War, and inasmuch as they are not certifiable lunatics. There is no inspection required. Should there be a large number of these men who have sustained nerve shock, I am afraid it may not be possible to keep them indefinitely under the control of the Secretary of State, and eventually we may have to certify them.

Sir H. CRAIK

Is it not the case that the medical profession are most anxious that none of those practices of inspection which otherwise apply to asylums should be applied to these cases?

Mr. TENNANT

They are.

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