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8
Maternity and Child Welfare.
The activities of the Council under this heading were continued
during 1944 with only a few variations noted below.
Grants.— No variation was made in the grants paid by the
Council to various bodies carrying on work ancillary to the scheme
for maternity and child welfare.
Visiting.— The Health Visitors paid 8,893 home visits to children
u nder 1 and 5,927 to children between 1 and 5. The total number
of home visits for all purposes during the year paid by Health
Visitors was 23,701.
Infant Welfare Centres. —660 sessions, 18,982 attendances.
Ante-Natal Clinics. —232 sessions, 3,145 attendances.
Post-Natal Clinics. —The activities of the Post-Natal Clinic,
which were suspended in 1941, following the damage caused by
enemy action at Southlands, were resumed at the Gideon Road
Cen tre in January. During the year 33 sessions were held, the
attendances numbering 199.
Mothercraft Classes. —239 meetings, 2,921 attendances.
Dental Clinic.—Following the destruction of the Dental Clinic
by enemy action, arrangements were made with the London County
Council for dental treatment to be carried out at St. James's Hospital,
this service commencing in March, 1941. During the year
159 mothers and 51 children were referred to the Clinic, and of
these 57 mothers and 31 children had attended.
Hospitals.— 560 Cases were referred to hospitals, etc., from the
Welfare Centres, and 4,389 visits were paid at the request of various
hospitals, etc.
National Dried Milk and Vitamins.—Throughout the year,
National dried milk and fruit juice and cod liver oil, supplied by the
Ministry of Food, have been distributed to children and expectant
mothers through the Public Health Department and the Welfare
and Ante-natal Clinics. The totals issued through these sources
during the year were: National Dried Milk, 7,529 packets; Fruit
Juice, 42,004 bottles; Cod Liver Oil, 4,337 bottles and 856 packets
of capsules.
Priority Dockets for Sheets.—In November arrangements were
ma de for the issue of priority dockets to enable mothers who were
being confined at home to purchase utility sheets. The maximum
allowed to any one mother was three. Up to the end of the year
38 dockets were issued to 15 mothers.
Dinners.—Women and children were still sent for dinners to
the dining rooms of the Women's League of Service at Southlands.
The Invalid Kitchens Association also supplied meals during the
year from a kitchen established in Balham, the dinners being
delivered at the home of the patient.