5. ACTIVITY AND PERFORMANCE
5.1.19 How many patients with (a) mental illness
and (b) learning difficulties have been resident in each high
secure hospital in each year from 1997? Can the Department comment
on numbers and prevalence in medium secure hospitals and prisons?
(Q58)
Answer
1. Tables 58a and 58b show
the total number of patients in high security psychiatric hospitals
in each of the last 10 years, from 1997 to 2008, and the number
of patients who were classified as having a learning disability
(within the Mental Health Act 1983 categories of mental impairment
or severe mental impairment) for the same period. The figures
embrace mental illness, psychopathic disorder, mental impairment
and severe mental impairment. The learning disabilities figures
in table 58b are also included in table 58a and embrace the Mental
Health Act 1983 classifications of mental impairment and severe
mental impairment.
2. Table 58a indicates a continuing downward
trend in the total number of high security psychiatric hospital
patients and in the number of patients with a classification of
mental impairment/severe mental impairment. Figures exclude patients
on trial leave of absence and dangerous and severe personality
disorder patients.
3. The downward trend demonstrated in the table
reflects the development in recent years for the high security
psychiatric hospital patient population to reduce as secure psychiatric
services more widely, particularly at a medium secure level, have
been developed.
Medium secure services
4. Data are not available for the total
number of people with mental illness and with learning disabilities
who have been in medium secure psychiatric units. However table
58a shows the figures that are available for the numbers of patients
in NHS secure units—these figures include patients in high,
medium and low secure units. The figures do not include NHS patients
in independent sector units. There are currently 66 medium secure
units, with just over one-third being run by the independent sector.
Prevalence of mental illness and learning difficulties
in the prison population
5. It is not possible to state with any
precision how many prisoners have mental illness at any one time.
However, a survey of mental ill health in the prison population
undertaken in 1997 by the Office for National Statistics[9]
estimated that around 90% of prisoners had at least one of the
five disorders (personality disorder, psychosis, neurosis, alcohol
misuse, and drug dependence) considered in the survey. Co-morbidity
levels are also high.
6. More recently, Ministry of Justice research
suggested that common mental health problems are very prevalent
in prisons, eg 82% of prisoners on sentences of less than four
years identified with anxiety or depression[10]
and an evaluation of prison mental health in-reach services found
up to 25% of prisoners are affected by more serious mental health
conditions.[11]
7. The number of prisoners transferred to
hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983 was 1,278 in 2008-09.
This figure has remained relatively stable over the last three
years.
8. There is currently no routine screening
for learning disabilities in prisoners. However recent research
among adult male prisoners in the north west showed that the rate
of learning disabilities was 7%, compared to a rate of 2% in the
general population.
Table 58a
TOTAL NUMBER OF PATIENTS RESIDENT IN HIGH
SECURE HOSPITALS
|
| As at | Ashworth
| Broadmoor | Rampton
| Total |
|
| 31.12.97 | 456
| 440 | 454
| 1,350 |
| 31.12.98 | 426
| 426 | 457
| 1,309 |
| 31.12.99 | 416
| 429 | 447
| 1,292 |
| 31.12.00 | 410
| 410 | 429
| 1,249 |
| 31.12.01 | 405
| 382 | 392
| 1,179 |
| 31.12.02 | 367
| 331 | 375
| 1,073 |
| 31.12.03 | 289
| 314 | 372
| 975 |
| 31.12.04 | 270
| 286 | 357
| 913 |
| 31.12.05 | 272
| 272 | 360
| 904 |
| 31.12.06 | 237
| 286 | 339
| 862 |
| 31.12.07 | 216
| 250 | 325
| 791 |
| 31.12.08 | 213
| 253 | 312
| 778 |
|
| Source: |
| High Security Hospital Specialised Commissioners
|
Footnotes:
|
| 1. The figures embrace mental illness, psychopathic disorder, mental impairment and severe mental impairment.
|
Table 58b
TOTAL NUMBER OF PATIENTS WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES IN
HIGH SECURE HOSPITALS
|
| As at | Ashworth
| Broadmoor | Rampton
| Total |
|
| 31.12.97 | 18
| 0 | 111
| 129 |
| 31.12.98 | 9
| 0 | 104
| 113 |
| 31.12.99 | 0
| 0 | 95
| 95 |
| 31.12.00 | 3
| 0 | 87
| 90 |
| 31.12.01 | 3
| 0 | 87
| 90 |
| 31.12.02 | 4
| 1 | 75
| 80 |
| 31.12.03 | 2
| 0 | 63
| 65 |
| 31.12.04 | 0
| 0 | 55
| 55 |
| 31.12.05 | 0
| 0 | 48
| 48 |
| 31.12.06 | 0
| 0 | 40
| 40 |
| 31.12.07 | 0
| 0 | 44
| 44 |
| 31.12.08 | 0
| 0 | 39
| 39 |
|
| Source: |
| High Security Hospital Specialised Commissioners
|
Footnotes:
|
| 1. These figures are included in the first part of the table—embracing the Mental Health Act 1983 classifications of mental impairment and severe mental impairment.
|
9
Psychiatric morbidity Among Prisoners in England and Wales,
ONS 1998. Back
10
Stewart D The problems and needs of newly sentenced prisoners
MoJ research series 2008. Back
11
Shaw et al (2008) A National evaluation of prison mental
health in reach services. Back
| 
