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Further, 223 student nurses from local hospitals received community experience and an additional 62
attended a six week community care course. It is proposed to extend the community care course to 96
places in 1973. Thirteen SEN pupils and 2 SRN students received community experience leading to their
integrated certificate.
DOMICILIARY MIDWIFERY SERVICE
During 1972 the City Council continued to provide a domiciliary midwifery service to meet the needs of
mothers wishing to be confined at home and for those who were confined in hospital and whose social
conditions permitted early discharge. In the S.W.I.area Westminster Hospital provided the service on an
agency basis for the City Coulcil.
During the year discussions continued with St. Mary's Hospital, W.2 to negotiate an integration of the
domiciliary and hospital midwifery services to cover the remainder of the City. The approval of the
Secretary of State for Health and Social Security was given in December 1972 and arrangements were
concluded with the Board of Governors of St. Mary's Hospital. The Inner London Executive Council and
the Inner London Local Medical Committee were consulted and they welcomed and supported the
proposals. This joint venture between the City Council and the hospital is another step towards the forthcoming
reorganisation of the National Health Service in 1974.
The revised arrangement came into operation on Monday 1st January, 1973, and the Council's midwives
are based at St. Mary's Hospital, Harrow Road, W.9.
They continue to conduct home confinements when required and do ante-natal visits and post natal
nursings for early discharge patients. They are employed in the hospital in the labour wards and lying-in
wards and the Ante-Natal and Post Natal Clinics, enabling them to maintain their efficiency and gain
additional experience.
Nurses from the Middlesex Hospital again spent a day with the City Council's Midwives as part of their
obstetric training.
Three midwives were in post at the beginning of the year. Two resigned early in the year and were replaced
by 1 permanent member. Agency nurses were engaged for relief during periods of annual leave and sickness.
The City Council's midwives attended 6 home confinements during 1972 in addition to ante- and postnatal
nursing, and took 159 blood samples from babies for Guthrie Tests to detect Phenylketonuria besides
those taken as a routine on babies discharged from hospital before their seventh day of life.
Details relating to the number of domiciliary confinements and early discharges nursed in 1972 are set
out in Table 38, page 81.
LOAN OF HOME NURSING EQUIPMENT
The service provided by the City Council under the scheme for the free loan of home nursing equipment
continues to fulfil the needs of Westminster residents and to ease the burden of those who have the problem
of nursing sick relatives at home. The provision of this equipment often enables the ailing to be nursed at
home and thereby postpone or obviate hospital admission; also by the provision of essential nursing aids
many patients are able to be discharged home from hospital earlier than would be possible otherwise.
Items requested tend to follow the pattern of previous years.
My gratitude is extended once more to the British Red Cross Society (Westminster Division) for their
continued help in the distribution of smaller items of equipment.