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WELFARE CENTRE ATTENDANCE.
Owing to there-commencement of enemy air attack during daylight,
the attendances at the infant welfare centres in the middle of
the year fluctuated very considerably for a while, but became more
stable towards the end of the year. The attendances were as
follows:-
Villa Street
Manor Place
Lorrimore Hall
(From 14.2.44)
Larcom Street
Pocock Street
Crossways
Lambeth Road
Guy's Hospital
Total
Infants under 1. 3297 1464 2095 1336 1543 1063 1186 1121 13605
Children 1-5. 72 588 723 797 748 710 1499 912 6698
Infants seen by
doctor 990 493 569 847 628 353 737 472 5089
Children 1-5
seen by doctor 362 207 277 376 335 247 862 512 3178
ANTE-NATAL CLINICS.
Ante-natal examinations (including post-natal examinations) were
conducted at two municipal and two voluntary clinics during the year.
842 expectant mothers made 4281 attendances. 907 women attended for
post-natal examination.
PREMATURE INFANTS .
Following upon the receipt of a Circular from the Ministry of
Health arrangements were made for one of the Council's Health
Visitors to receive special training in the care of premature infants,
and to meet the need for proper care of these infants after
discharge from hospital, special equipment was purchased, and
provision for the supply of expressed breast milk was made with one
of the London hospitals. Notification of birth cards were withdrawn
from midwives and doctors, and amended to include the birth weight of
infants in cases where this was 5½ lbs, or less.
All local hospitals were requested to notify me immediately
upon the discharge from hospital of premature infants. Notifications
in respect of 10 infants under 5½ 1bs. weight were received, but
information was not available in many instances where children were
born outside the London area.
CHILD LIFE PROTECTION.
At the end of the year there were 11 foster mothers and 11 foster
children on the Council's register. Seven women were registered as
foster mothers during the year. One foster mother and child returned
to the Borough after being evacuated. Four instances came to light
where children were being kept illegally without registration, but in
each case it was satisfactorily proved that the omission to register
was due to ignorance of the law and not to wilful contravention. In
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