allegations that the psychiatric facility was endangering the public by reintegrating patients into the community before they had been rehabilitated.

Two women have allegedly been attacked by St. Brendan's patients over the past two months and a hospital source told The Royal Gazette this week that those incidents were "just the tip of the iceberg.'' "...The hospital has made only a half-hearted effort to provide patients with the necessary (social) skills,'' the St. Brendan's staffer said.

Yesterday, however, a team of high-ranking hospital administrators held a news conference at St. Brendan's to "reassure the public that what we are doing is in keeping with policies and practices that are being followed in other parts of the world for the psychiatric patient.'' Among those in attendance were hospitals executive director Mrs. Sheila Manderson, St. Brendan's administrator Mr. George Simons, chief of psychiatry Dr. George Lament, nursing and patient services director Mrs. Joan Dillis Wright and community health services co-ordinator Ms Patrice Dill.

"We have always just taken a small percentage of psychiatric patients in the hospital,'' Mr. Simons said.

Mr. Simons explained that the policy of "de-institutionalisation'' began 14 years ago.

Since then, he said, St. Brendan's has been satisfied enough with the results to propose that most of the hospital's patients be housed in rented accommodation in various parts of the Island.

Those who are involved must make regular visits to the hospital and are supervised in their home settings by a "multi-disciplinary'' team of professionals.

"We feel that their quality of life is definitely improved by getting them out in the community,'' Ms Dill said. "It destigmatises them, gets them out in the workforce. This is in the best interest of the patient.'' Dr. Lament admitted there was an element of risk in such a scheme, saying: "Psychiatry is not an exact science and we're not right 100 percent of the time. Occasionally we do make mistakes.'' One of those mistakes, the panel said, was the placement of a 41-year-old man in the same Sandys Parish home as a 60-year-old woman. In August, the man allegedly beat the woman and sent her to hospital with serious facial injuries.

He will not be tried for the attack, Police have said.

"That case was an anomaly, a sad and tragic situation but not one that could have been prevented,'' Dr. Lament said.

Added Mr. Simons: "This was, we thought, a very successful placement with a mother-son relationship. These patients secured the home on their own and were being monitored on a regular basis by our staff. This act was out of character for this patient.'' Although a hospital source told The Royal Gazette that the patient had a long history of "violent'' and "paranoid'' behaviour, Mr. Simons denied that the man was volatile.

The panel did not discuss the other attack involving a St. Brendan's patient because it is currently before the courts.

At times the panel contradicted itself in addressing certain topics. While Mr.

Simons, for example, maintained that "nursing aides will not be responsible for any of the medication of the patients,'' Ms Dill told The Royal Gazette that the multi-disciplinary experts -- not all of whom are authorised to administer drugs -- did not visit patients' homes on a daily basis.

A hospital source had earlier expressed concerns that deinstitutionalised patients who refused or forgot to take their drugs would be overlooked, especially by underqualified nursing assistants.

One topic the panel did agree on was the probability of a "disgruntled'' staffer at work.

"Maybe there are some who would like to work in the community and have not been appointed,'' Mrs. Wright said. "It may also be fear of the unknown. When you move into the community, it's a philosophical change that you have to make and it's not everyone's cup of tea.''