§ Mr. Doddsasked the Minister of Health when a certified patient makes the necessary progress warranting a discharge from a mental institution what assistance is given to such a patient being without friends or relatives or the financial resources to provide a home to take up a normal way of life again; or whether such patients are retained in a mental institution.
§ Mr. VosperPatients who have recovered from their mental illness cannot legally be detained in hospital. When discharged they cease to be the responsibility of the hospital management committee, but help in resuming normal life in the community is given by social workers of the hospital or of the local health authority. Financial help, if necessary, would be given by the National Assistance Board; any question of residential accommodation is for the local authority under Part III of the National Assistance Act.