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92
Dr. S. Eleanor Hill's Report on Maternity and Child Welfare.
1. The Infant Welfare Centres. It is desirable that the public
should be reminded, from time to time, of the purpose and scope of
Infant Welfare Centres, of which there are six in Deptford. At these,
babies and children under five years of age are weighed and examined
in order that their progress may be noted, and any defect or disease
may be discovered as early as possible. The Health Visitor keeps a
record of the baby's weights and also of any notes made by the doctor
as to the child's condition. The mother also keeps a card with the dates
of baby's attendances and weights, and on this card the Health Visitor
writes down detailed instructions as to the feeding and any other advice
given by the doctor. The aim steadily kept in view is to prevent
disease by educating the mother as to the best method of feeding,
clothing and managing her infant, and by giving her advice as to air,
exercise and the general hygiene of the home. Special attention is
paid to detecting the early signs of disease, and the mother is directed
to get immediate treatment for any condition requiring it, while she is
warned against the injurious practice of giving medicines unnecessarily
or without medical advice. Treatment of children who are ill cannot
be properly undertaken at the centres, (a) because they are not equipped
for this purpose, (b) because it is undesirable to crowd sick babies into
a room with a number of healthy ones, (c) because a child who is ill
requires to be seen by a doctor more frequently than once a week, and
(d) because there is ample provision for such treatment elsewhere, and
mothers are encouraged to seek it through the usual channels, viz., the
family doctor, the neighbouring hospitals, or the parish doctor, as the
case may be. Much help is, however, given to harassed mothers by
telling them whether treatment is really necessary, and by advising
them, in hospital cases, where and when to go, and how to get there, a
letter being sent with the patient, in special cases, by the medical officer,
giving the medical history and any important symptoms observed.
Among the poorer families, where a doctor's fee is out of the question
and the expense and loss of time involved in going to hospital make it
difficult for the mother to obtain treatment, a few simple remedies are
applied for minor ailments, but the use of these is strictly limited. In
cases where the family income is small and extra nourishment is needed,
some help is given by the sale of dried milk, cod liver oil emulsion, etc.,
at the wholesale price, and in necessitous cases grants of milk are
allowed according to the scale approved by the Ministry of Health. In