London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Bromley 1951
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Bromley]
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The following tabulation indicates the extent of defects discovered at periodic medical inspections at schools in Bromley compared with the extent of defects in the county as a whole.
| Requiring Treatment. Incidence per 1,000 Insp. | Requiring Observation. Incidence per 1,000 Insp. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skin | 4.16 | (10.7) | 7.42 | ( 4.1) |
| Eyes—Vision | 38.61 | (73.1) | 39.50 | (43.2) |
| Eyes—Squint | 2.67 | (10.5) | 3.56 | ( 4.7) |
| Ears—Hearing | 1.19 | ( 2.5) | 0.59 | ( 2.5) |
| Ears—Otitis Media | — | ( 2.9) | 0.3 | ( 1.8) |
| Nose and Throat | 4.46 | (45.8) | 25.25 | (63.6) |
| Speech | 2.08 | ( 2.4) | 2.08 | ( 3.6) |
| Epilepsy | — | ( 0.3) | — | ( 0.6) |
| Other Nervous Conditions. | 0.3 | ( 1.5) | 2.67 | ( 2.7) |
Note.—The figures in brackets are comparable figures for the whole country
covering the year 1947, the latest figures available to me at the time
of writing.
With regard to the private schools, a difficulty arises from the fact
that there is a good deal of movement of pupils and ages of entry are
not fixed. It has therefore been found difficult to examine the children
at definite age groups without missing out a large number altogether.
In view of this, all the schools have been worked through systematically,
and the intention is to repeat the examinations at three-year
intervals, and by this method it is hoped that very few whose parents
wish them to be examined will escape the net. Last year a table was,
printed in the Annual Report comparing the nutritional state of children
attending independent schools with that of children at maintained
schools, and it is interesting and instructive to see how little
variation there is in the figures.
Independent Schools. Maintained Schools.
1950. 1951. 1950. 1951.
Category A 84.9% 85.2% 68.3% 64.4%
Category B 15.1% 14.6% 30.2% 34.7%
Category C — 0.2% 1.5% 0.9%
These figures tend to confirm the impression, gained as a result of
last year's experience, that pupils attending independent schools have,
on the average, a higher nutritional standard than those attending
maintained schools.
Turning for a moment to the question of some of the defects
needing treatment, a marked change has come over the picture, as will
be seen from the following table:—