Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/879686
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 27 SEPTEMBER 2017 THREE white storks (cikonja bajda) have settled down to roost in Birzebbugia before continu- ing onwards on their migratory route to Africa. BirdLife Malta, which is watching over the three birds, said that storks were frequent visitors to Malta at this time of the year. White storks roosting in Birzebbugia DENISE GRECH HOMELESS people are turn- ing to Mount Carmel for a place to sleep at, resulting in what psychologists and men- tal health nurses are calling a "revolving door" in the hospi- tal. Former patients, who are dispatched following a reha- bilitation course, also contin- ue to return to Mount Carmel in search of shelter. "They feel comfortable with us," managing director Maria Assunta Bonello said. "We give them methadone, which reduces the withdrawal ef- fect of drugs, or take them to Mater Dei if needs be, but we cannot let these individu- als roam the streets with no- where to stay." A ward separate from new admissions, Hall 8B, has been assigned for these chronic patients to have a place to stay. Seven new beds have been added to the 10 beds in the Hall, but director Bonel- lo says these new additions might not be enough, as for- mer patients continue to turn to the hospital. The hall eventually became so overcrowded that Mount Carmel had to place mat- tresses on the f loor so as to have enough sleeping places for the incoming patients. The inf lux of synthetic drugs such as f lakka, a syn- thetic drug that sends people into frenzy, has exponentially increased the number of drug addicts and, subsequently, of patients returning to Mount Carmel for somewhere to stay, Bonello continued. Synthetic drugs have exac- erbated the problem, offering a cheaper alternative to drugs like cocaine. Chemicals vary from drug to drug, making it harder for police to trace the substance. "Their family members and friends often give up on them, leaving them with their backs against the wall," Bonello said. The Attard hospital is aware of 10 patients who return to Hall 8B once every few days, often high on drugs, and ask for a place to rest. Health Commissioner Charles Messina is informed of the pa- tients and is conducting on- going talks with NGOs Cari- tas and Sedqa to encourage them to take the patients in. The shelter Dar San Frang- isk has taken in some of these individuals, but has subse- quently had to refuse them following altercations with other residents. Hall 8B was recently thrust into the spotlight when PD MP and former health min- ister Godfrey Farrugia pub- lished a letter calling on the Health Commissioner to launch an investigation, af- ter he accused the hospital of violating patients' rights. No strict protocol is in place and the patients are resid- ing in a "chaotic and tense atmosphere," after the halls segregating men and women became mixed, Farrugia said. Assunta Bonello insisted that the patients have a social worker, occupational thera- pist and forensic psycholo- gist following their case, but that "patients sometimes re- fuse treatment or rehabilita- tion because they lost hope that they will ever be sober again." Homeless people turning to Mount Carmel for shelter The Attard hospital is aware of 10 patients who return to Hall 8B once every few days