London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Greenwich 1966
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Greenwich Borough]
This page requires JavaScript
105
Some of the children under five years of age had lost their
hearing through illness during infancy but the majority were suffering
from deafness of congenital origin.
It is the children with acquired deafness who continue to
present the greatest difficulty because this department must rely upon
notification from hospitals when patients are discharged. Information
is usually received from local hospitals about such children but,
from those outside the Borough it is less complete although the
health visitors may be able to rectify omissions if the patient is
under five years of age or if there is a pre-school child in the same
family.
Children on the register who are under five years of age are
assessed to determine whether special schooling will be required. A
final decision is made only after discussion between parents, social
and other workers and particularly the otologist. It can be seen
from the following table that only 48 children attended special
schools due to their disability. Fortunately the majority were able
to attend ordinary schools, some requiring special assistance but
others need only regular supervision to ensure that (1) they are
attending hospital or clinic as required, (2) they are wearing their
prescribed hearing aids and (3) they are sitting in the recommended
places in the classroom and that school progress is satisfactory.
Deaf Register—
| Under 5 yrs. | Over 5 yrs. | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. of Children on register | 13 | 179 | 192 |
| No. of Children with hearing aids | 12 | 53 | 65 |
| No. of Children attending Deaf Schools or Partially Hearing Units | 2 | 29 | 31 |
| No. of Children attending other Special Schools | 1 | 16 | 17 |
Depending on the degree of deafness, the Welfare Section is
informed about certain of the children on the Deaf Register when
they leave school. Social workers make themselves known to
these young people and their families so that any needs arising
from their handicap may be met. The vast majority of deaf and
partially hearing school-leavers compete for jobs on the open
market and obtain and keep their employment without difficulty.
Home Nursing
Success attending the unification of the previous three nursing
organisations is reflected in the statistics for the current year. In
contrast to the trend noted in recent years, new cases increased by
875 to a total of 3,505 and visits by 44,825 to 171,181. Closer identification
of the nursing service with other branches of the department