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8
dation became available. The Loughborough Junction and
Stockwell Centre premises suffered grievous damage, and for
months work has been carried on under extreme difficulty.
Scarcely any centre escaped entirely, but the work continued
everywhere with the firm intention of the users and staffs that,
whatever happened, the children should not suffer.
The evacuation scheme for the confinement of expectant mothers
in safety outside London was continued, and 643 mothers profited
by it, compared with 605 in 1943, 415 in 1942 and 322 in 1941.
Any children under five years belonging to the expectant mothers
evacuated were accommodated in short stay nurseries outside
London if no private arrangements could be made. The same
facility was afforded to any mother entering hospital for any
treatment or operation away from her home.
Child Life Protection.
1,201 visits and re-visits were made to foster mothers and nurse
children.
Foster mothers on Register at 31.12.44 26 (29)
Nurse children on Register at 31.12.44 34(34)
The demand for foster mothers far outstrips the supply, because
with part-time factory employment so easy to obtain, there is a
greater financial incentive for a woman to undertake work in a
factory. Bombing also was a strong deterrent from undertaking
the responsibility.
Care of Premature Infants.
A space is provided in the notification of births card for the
insertion of the child's weight, and all cases born in the district are
followed up specially until they are one month old.
Close co-operation is maintained between the hospitals and the
public health department in order that on returning home the
mother shall know to whom to turn immediately an emergency
arises needing extra equipment, help in feeding the infant, and so on.
It is of interest to report that of ten premature infants born in
one area of the district, all the mothers had suffered from persistent
anxiety or illness during pregnancy. Five were illegitimate, the
father of one had deserted his wife, the father of another was
missing, the family of another were bombed out several times, the
mother of another had some nervous instability and had two
children in one year, the last mother had high blood pressure,
pyelitis and cardiac insufficiency.