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16
The Local Government Board point out that the importance
of conserving the infant life of the population makes it
desirable that steps should be taken in the direction indicated,
even at the present time when strict economy is required in
the expenditure of public bodies. It is not, however, intended
that any large outlay should be involved in the provision of
the services mentioned. The health visitors and many of the
doctors required to work such a scheme will be women, and
no labour need be employed which is required for more direct
purposes of the war.
The Board also observe that the initiation of a complete
scheme involves time, and the Board do not desire that work
should be delayed until a complete scheme can be formulated.
The Board are of opinion that the local authority should in
the first instance carefully consider whether the existing
arrangements for home visitation are adequate. After the
provision of health visitors the next step should be to arrange
in populous centres for a maternity centre at which medical
advice and treatment may be provided for mothers, including
expectant mothers, and for children, whether ailing or not.
With regard to the establishment of maternity centres, I
am of opinion that for the present we have sufficient in the
Borough, but I think the Committee should consider the
appointment of more health visitors.
At present the Council employs one health visitor, who
has been endeavouring to cope with the work of the whole
Borough.
In 1914 there were 2,935 births, out of which 2,184 were
visited, and in addition 512 subsequent visits were paid.
To make these visits of permanent value there should be
constant supervision, and the babies should be visited and
revisited as often as is found necessary in each case. To do
this adequately it will be necessary for the Council to appoint
additional health visitors. They could, if appointed, pay more
frequent visits, and where necessary advise the mothers to take
their children to the centres, where they themselves could
attend at suitable times.
The Local Government Board has set up as an ideal
standard that there should be one health visitor to every 500
births. This would mean, if adopted in Hammersmith, a staff
of six health visitors.
It will probably interest the Committee to compare the
infantile mortality in Hammersmith with that of the other
Boroughs and London as a whole during the last ten years.