PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Christine Rickards
AU  - Christine Gildersleeve
AU  - Rosemary Fitzgerald
AU  - Brian Cooper
TI  - The health of clients of a social service department
DP  - 1976 Apr 01
TA  - The Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners
PG  - 237--243
VI  - 26
IP  - 165
4099  - http://bjgp.org/content/26/165/237.short
4100  - http://bjgp.org/content/26/165/237.full
SO  - J R Coll Gen Pract1976 Apr 01; 26
AB  - A survey was undertaken of the health problems and current medical care of new clients making contact with the Social Service Department of an outer London borough. The findings indicated that social-service clients represent a high-morbidity group of the population: 47 per cent of the survey sample showed evidence of major physical illness or disability, and 16 per cent of major mental illness. A sub-group was identified, corresponding to about 300 new clients annually, who suffered from serious ill-health or disability, but were at the time not under medical care. These findings support the argument for closer liaison between medical and social services in the community and, in particular, for more social-worker attachments in general practice.