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95
CARE OF THE FEET.
A branch of work which has received a good deal
of attention during recent years is Chiropody. The
clinics which have been established at the Chelsea
Polytechnic and by the Bermondsey and Walthamstow
Borough Councils have revealed the existence of a
large amount of acute physical discomfort, readily
amenable to treatment to the great advantage of
numbers of working people whose working efficiency
has been impaired by foot troubles. The clinics have
also brought to light orthopaedic defects which might
otherwise have been neglected and by the reference
of such cases to orthopaedic surgeons early appropriate
treatment has been obtained for the correction of such
defects. The teaching of foot hygiene is another
useful adjunct.
At the request of the Public Health Committee,
I reported on this subject last year and furnished
particulars of the equipment and staff which would
be necessary if the Council decided to establish a Foot
Clinic. For financial reasons, the scheme was not
proceeded with. A privately run clinic has since been
established in the borough, and another clinic exists
just over the borough boundary in Mare Street,
Hackney, both, I understand, well attended.