Wally Boater's account of the present day care for the elderly sums up the situation perfectly, (Oxford Mail, August 30).
The problem could have been solved if the large mental institutions had not been closed. On May 30, 1963 then Minister of Health, Enoch Powell, in a speech at Littlemore, forecast the closing of these hospitals. Littlemore Hospital had six wards caring for the elderly. Patients were placed in the ward according to their dependency.
The hospital was a village in itself, with churches, cinema, shops, library. Relatives could take patients for walks in the well maintained gardens.
Many ex-patients of the Littlemore and Ashurst Clinics will remember Mary Bewick. She looked after patients for 42 years. Sadly, she is being cared for in a home in Reading, no home being available for her in Oxford.
JOE BEWICK Yeftly Drive, Sandford-on-Thames
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