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250
Report of Health Visitor.
Public Health Offices,
January lst, 1909.
Sir,—
The following is a Report of my work during the year 1908. I
commenced my duties on May 4th, my time being chiefly occupied in
trying to gain interest in the formation of a Voluntary Helpers Association.
I, of necessity, met with some opposition, but that the idea was generally
accepted with favour was shown, when at a meeting held on June 1st, only
one month after I commenced my duties, it was unanimously decided that
an Association, having for its object the prevention of infantile mortality,
should be formed in the Borough. Since then the work has gone steadily
forward, until at the time of writing, the Association has some sixty
members, visiting from one to thirty-five babies each. Five "Centres''
have been formed in the Borough, each Centre having its own Hon. Sec.,
Committee and Band of Helpers, from members of which the Executive
Committee (which is the governing body of the Association) is formed.
Monthly "Consultation Days for Mothers and Babies" have been
established in three "Centres."* Here fully qualified medical women
(whose services are honorary) attend to give advice on the feeding, etc.,
of both infant and mother, and the infants are also weighed. I regret
that so far my efforts to get a "Nursing Mothers' Milk Fund" established
have been unsuccessful. Much good would be done in this way if the
Guardians, when giving relief to a nursing mother, would see that due
proportion was given in the form of milk and oatmeal, and in the case of a
mother unable to suckle her child, a proper supply of milk for the infant.
The organisation of an Association like this of necessity takes up a large
amount of time, and as the Voluntary Helpers' reports are received every
four weeks, the clerical work entailed is considerable and leaves me but little
time for actual visiting. I am strongly of opinion that each case ought to
be visited first by a trained worker, and those requiring systematic
visiting, handed on, by her, to the Voluntary Helper. With only one
trained worker, this is, of course, impossible.
*A consultation day in a fourth centre has been established at the beginning
of 1909.