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110
Health Visiting
The shortage of health visitors continued unabated during the
current year and 9 health visitors resigned and one retired. Resignations
were due to a variety of causes, marriage, pregnancy, removal
from the area or simply a desire for change; one centre superintendent
was appointed to an assistant nursing officer post in another
London borough.
Only one health visitor was recruited during the year, but in
August our four sponsored health visitor students successfully
finished their training and became health visitors for the borough.
Despite these additions the health visitor staffing situation remains
critical.
We have continued to recruit good clinic nurses and have been
able to promote a number of them to school nursing sister posts.
There is a considerable turnover of staff in the clinic and school
sister grades, but recruitment is satisfactory.
Services were continued on similar lines to those of previous
years and the following table summarises the visiting carried out
during 1966:—
No. of Cases Visited by Health Visitors
Children born in 1966 4,165
Children born in 1965 5,054
Children bom in 1961/64 7,616
16,835
Persons aged 65 years and over 97
Persons aged 65 years and over (visited at special
request of G.P. or Hospital) 38
Mentally Disordered Persons 68
Mentally Disordered Persons (visited at special
request of G.P. or Hospital) 13
Persons Discharged from Hospitals other than Mental
(excl. maternity cases) 67
Persons Discharged from Hospitals other than Mental
(excl. maternity cases) (visited at special request
of G.P. or Hospital) 61
Tuberculous Households Visited 40
Households Visited re Other Infectious Diseases 276
Total Effective Visits and Re-visits 45,933
Unsuccessful Visits 10,166
Health Visitors—full time equivalent 23.1
T.B. Visitors & T.B. Health Visitors—Full time
equivalent 6.0
Co-operation with Hospital Departments—During 1966, as in
1965, the shortage of Medical Social Workers in hospitals caused
more Consultants to call upon the services of Social Workers from
the Health and Welfare Department.