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61
Salvation Army Midwifery Service.— One Salvation Army Midwife
served in Ilford during the year. 56 cases were attended by her, all as a
midwife, and a Doctor was called in to 17 of these cases.
Of the infants born there was 1 stillbirth.
Notifications were received from the Salvation Army Midwife that it
was proposed to substitute artificial feeding in respect of 5 infants.
Gas and Air Analgesia.—During 1955 gas and air analgesia was
administered in 419 cases, of which 368 were attended by the Domiciliary
Midwives (331 when acting as midwives and 37 when acting as maternity
nurses) and 51 were attended by the Salvation Army midwife.
All the domiciliary midwives employed at the end of the year were
qualified to administer gas and air analgesia and the one Salvation Army
midwife was also so qualified.
As reported last year, with a view to effecting an economy in the
use of ambulance vehicles, from the 6th May, 1955, arrangements have
been in operation for the midwives using cars in the course of their
duties each to hold a machine at their respective homes to take with them
to their own cases and there are three machines stored at the Ambulance
Station for the use of the remaining midwives. With regard to the latter,
the relatives of the patient are requested to collect a machine, where
possible, but when they cannot do this, arrangements are made for a
machine to be transported from the Ambulance Station to the house by
a hired car.
The Salvation Army midwives also have two machines which are kept
at their Branch Home and taken or sent to the home of the patient when
required.
The service is freely available to all having home confinements, provided
there are no medical contra-indications, and each expectant mother
on booking the midwife is supplied with a leaflet exp'aining the nature
and the availability of the service.

* Includes 200 running concurrently with Doctors' Clinics.
All patients booked for admission to the Maternity Hospital are
medically examined at the Ante-Natal Clinics. The first examination takes
place at the 10th week of pregnancy, or as soon as possible after that
time if the booking for hospital admission is not made until after the 10th
week. Further, arrangements are made for all hospital booked patients to
see the Obstetric Registrar at either the Ilford Maternity Hospital or the
Mayesbrook Ante-Natal Clinic at about the 35th week of pregnancy.