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MIDWIFERY SERVICE.
Out of a total of 1,488 births, 630 occurred at home and 858
took place in hospitals. For several years there has been an
increasing tendency for mothers to go into hospitals for their
confinements, a tendency which I think ought to be encouraged
at the present time in this borough. Of the 630 domiciliary
births, the proportion shewn from each source, which were booked
under our midwifery scheme is shown in the following table:-
Notified by
Number
Number booked under
Council's Scheme
88
Guy's Hospital Externs
230
Midwives
360
197
38
-
Doctors
Parents
2
-
Totals
630
285
The figure of 285 compares with 272 patients similarly booked
in 1936. In 149 of these cases the full fee of the midwife was paid
by the Council and a proportion of the fee was paid in 128 other
cases; the remaining 8 cases were assessed to pay the full fee. At
the time of writing the London County Council Scheme under
the new Midwives' Act has only just come into force and it is not
yet possible to say in what way, or to what extent, our own
scheme will be affected. The London County Council Scheme is
so very similar in its main features to our own, which has now
been in operation since the end of 1929, that the advantages of this
additional scheme in this borough are not at present very obvious,
though they may become more apparent as time goes on. The
two London County Council midwives appointed for this district
have begun attending ante-natal clinics and have already been
welcomed by the staff.