Ex-mental patient care limit attacked
A new rule forcing social workers to close former mental patients' cases after two years would compromise after-care services, a social worker has warned.
The new government policy, introduced in April, applies to non-governmental organisation (NGO) social workers offering services to former mental patients discharged from halfway houses. Each worker is to cover 50 cases a year and a case has to be closed in two years.
The new rule came into effect after lengthy discussions between the Government and NGOs. There are now only eight after-care social workers offering services to about 400 former mental patients. Their job mainly involves ensuring that clients take medication and helping them find jobs and flats.
But Mental Health Association of Hong Kong after-care social worker Wu Kwok-wing said two years was not enough to follow through with a client. He said it was difficult to develop a close relationship without long-term counselling and said the limit should be raised to three years in line with international findings.
'We want to follow up the case for a longer period. But sadly we can't,' Mr Wu said. 'We think the requirement of closing a file within two years is bad for clients. Most of our clients are very stable, as they have lived in the halfway houses for two years. But they have to deal with much psychological stress.' He said medical social workers at psychiatric clinics could not offer sufficient help. 'They only see the patients once a month in the clinics. The patients cannot develop with them a close relationship like we do,' Mr Wu said. 'The patients would not disclose feelings and emotional stress to them easily.' Alice Leung Wong Sau-mei, chief social work officer of the Social Welfare Department's rehabilitation and medical social services, said the new policy had the blessing of the NGOs and made it easier to quantify their subsidies. 'The agreement was drawn up after thorough discussions and they all agree,' she said.
'As the Government funds the services, we want to know if the services are carried out in a satisfactory manner. This agreement is an indicator.'