View report page

HOME HELP SERVICE
This has been a year of adjustment; the change of areas from four to three,
streamlined the service and cut short the difficulty of recruiting at that time in one
area.
The one type of case that has increased is the morning and evening help; we
have given 2,365 hours assistance to these families, and it has been instrumental in
holding them together. This is now a very valuable part of the home help service.
Help has been given to two toxemia of pregancy cases, and problem families
have remained steady and 1,652 hours service was supplied by specially trained
home helps.
Demands for the service continue to increase, there is little demand for night
help (only one case) and for residential child help. Mental health cases numbered
34 and 50 maternity cases were covered, 29 T.B. were given assistance.
The second training course was held; it ran for two months, and covered 24
hours tuition in the practical and theoretical work of a home help; 50 specially
selected helps attended and from that number eight were chosen to attend problem
families. These helps play an important part in teaching the mother, and they work in
close co-operation with the health visitor and social case worker; they came from the
different area offices. In the light of experience we changed the programme for the
second course following talks with the helps who had attended the first; their suggestions
proved invaluable.
27