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staff particularly appreciated their monthly meeting with colleagues
at the British Hospital for Mothers and Babies.
Plans are now being considered which will, in future, enable
the Council's midwives to deliver babies in the Greenwich District
Hospital prior to the mothers' discharge to domiciliary midwifery
care.
Clinic services were maintained for General Practitioner Obstetricians
but, with the reduction in the number of home confinements,
the use of these facilities by the doctors is gradually declining.
Contrary to previous years, the response to the invitation to postnatal
examinations was again encouraging and the current year's
total of 605 attendances showed little change from the 1969 total
of 609.
Practising Midwives
In accordance with the Midwives Act, 1951, notifications of
intention to practise as midwives in the London Borough of Greenwich
during 1970 were received from 98 persons. Of these, 83
were in respect of hospital midwives and the remainder, i.e. 15,
were from those engaged in the Council's service.
Domiciliary Services
The Borough is divided into 8 midwifery areas, each with a fulltime
midwife, a further 3 areas having a combined midwife/district
nurse. There is one relief midwife/district nurse.
During 1970 there were 420 home confinements. In addition
there were 40 mothers booked for home confinements, but transferred
to hospital due to complications, and 374 patients were
discharged from hospital after 48 hours or more.
Domiciliary confinements during the year fell by 18% to a total
of 420 and the number of mothers discharged home early after
hospital confinement decreased by 12 to a figure of 374, of which
177 were booked discharges.