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Infant Welfare Clinics.

Toddlers' Clinics.
Circular 1550 of the Ministry of Health drew the attention
of Local Authorities particularly to the need of supervision of
children between the ages of 18 months and 5 years (toddlers).
The Annual Report for 1935 of the Chief Medical Officer of
the Ministry of Health similarly drew attention to the necessity
for efficient medical supervision and care for the child from 1-5
years of age, pointing out that such supervision had not yet
reached as high a level as had that of the infant. Both these
official documents stressed the necessity of there being no gap
between the good results obtained for children while under 1
year of age and their reception into the school medical service
on their fifth birthday.
Until about the age of 9-12 months the infant's problems
are generally mainly dietetic, while as he passes his first birthday
onwards to school age new considerations are gradually
arising—early crippling orthopaedic conditions, rickets, eye and
ear conditions, enlarged tonsils and adenoids and their sequelae,
the after-effects of the infectious diseases such as whooping
cough and measles and so on. There is, therefore, much in
favour of a differentiation into the toddlers' group after about
the age of 12 months.
After consideration of this Circular, the Maternity and Child
Welfare Committee recommended the institution of Toddlers'
Clinics. These clinics have been much appreciated by the
parents and the work they do is of distinct value.
Closely associated with toddlers' clinics is the domiciliary
visitation of the Health Visitors. During 1937 the number of
28