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HEAF TESTING
Heaf testing has been offered to new entrants of primary schools at the age of 5 years in an effort
to detect unknown cases of tuberculosis in the community. The family contacts of children producing
strongly positive reactions are followed up at the chest clinic.
During the year 52 primary schools were visited and 1,406 children were tested. Of these 38 were
found positive and referred to the chest clinic, where 13 were found to have no abnormality, 13 were
given treatment and 12 kept under observation.
INFLUENZA VACCINATION
Influenza vaccination was offered to staff and residents of residential homes, home helps and other
staff at special risk.
CHIROPODY
This service is provided for priority categories at seven centres throughout the borough i.e. for
women over 60, men over 65, expectant mothers, physically handicapped persons and children under
school leaving age. Treatment is by appointment and is free for persons receiving old age and normal
retirement pensions, those on social security supplementary benefits and children. The charge in other
cases is 25p per treatment but this may be reduced in necessitous cases.
There is a total of 12 chiropody chairs at the various centres and during the year the weekly average
number of clinic sessions held was 85. The mobile clinic services commenced in October and a total of 24
clinic sessions was held. Domiciliary treatment continued to be provided for the house bound; there is a
continual demand for this service.
Provision was made for extension of the service by the addition to the establishment of six posts of
senior chiropodist but despite all efforts to recruit the additional staff the best that could be acheived was
the filling of casual vacancies which arose during the year. The net result was a slight increase in the
overall number of sessions held as compared with 1971.