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79
All prospective Maternity Home patients are, of course, strongly
urged to attend these clinics and owing to the increasing numbers
at the Borough Hall Centre an additional clinic was opened at the
Shooters Hill Road centre which is immediately opposite the
Maternity Home.
During the year not a single patient developed any severe
signs of toxaemias of pregnancy though quite a number attended
the clinics with minor symptoms in the earlier stages. This
demonstrates clearly that provided treatment is instituted early
the prognosis in this type of case is certainly good. Thus the useful
function the Ante-Natal Clinics served has been the predetermination
of those cases needing surgical assistance.
As will be seen 23 patients (about 10 per cent.) needed such
surgical assistance, but from this group must be taken out 5 cases
which were accidents in pregnancy and childbirth which naturally
could neither be anticipated nor obviated. The majority of the
cases comprised those for whom examination proved that induction
of labour was necessary in the interest of both mother and child,
and those who exhibited lack of muscular tone militating against
a normal course of delivery. The remainder comprise those
patients, who, unfortunately, did not take advantage of Ante-Natal
facilities—some of whom presented themselves for admission to
the Maternity Home with severe obstetrical difficulties to be overcome—despite
the fact that they had booked accommodation
months before.
The Pre-Natal facilities have been taken advantage of by
many expectant mothers other than prospective Maternity Home
patients. Every patient who has attended the clinics has had her
general health supervised in addition to the special care exercised
in regard to her anticipated confinement ; for example, dental
treatment has been provided, digestive difficulties corrected, and
any conditions found likely to be inimical to her general health
remedied. Such care, it need scarcely be pointed out, cannot fail
to have far reaching beneficial effects on both the mothers' health
and the infants' welfare, particularly during the first and most
critical year of life.
The policy outlined in last year's Annual Report as to admitting
any case that books before labour, whether likely to be a normal
case or otherwise, has been continued and I gratefully acknowledge
the friendly co-operation of local doctors and midwives.
Ante-Natal Work Generally.—Reports continue to be
received from time to time indicating that there is still a considerable
amount of real injury to the health of the mother as well as the
the serious disability caused by the lack of sufficiently skilled