SynopsisA survey over 2 years of all Police Referrals (Section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983) in an inner-city health district identified 163 cases, with a core group of repeat referrals. Previous psychiatric admissions, a diagnosis of schizophrenia, social deprivation, and a bias towards young men of Afro-Caribbean ethnicity were key features. The difficulty of obtaining clear data and uncertainties within the law rebound unfairly on patients, police and psychiatrists. Section 136, while not inappropriate diagnostically, can be seen as highlighting unmet social and medical needs in the context of community care. The requirement for coordinated resources, including acute in-patient services sufficient for deprived populations and legal provision for treatment beyond a hospital's boundaries, seems paramount.

A slippery slope. By Mari Ness A nother slip. A tiny one. Another lurch, a huge one. Another -Her teeth sunk into her lips, drawing blood.She was not going to scream. She was not.She was not going to give anyone that satisfaction.Assuming anyone was even listening. Probably not. But she could not -would not -ignore the possibility -the probability -that her suit also held some sort of recording device, allowing them to check on her regularly. A device she would have to locate and destroy. Until then -No screaming.No matter how much her brain was shrieking.Not from the cold, or from the ice, or the isolation. But from the vertigo, the horrific unceasing vertigo, the way the stars kept shifting and spinning and the way the ice and rock beneath her -No.

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