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PERSONAL HEALTH SERVICE
Maternity and Child Welfare
Each of the Council's seventeen Health Service Centres provided some
or all of the following services throughout the year:
Ante natal, post natal, child health, prophylaxis, creche, health
education, dental care of expectant and nursing mothers and children
under 5 years of age.
Similar facilities were also provided at two centres run by voluntary committees
with grant aid from the Council.
Mothercraft classes were conducted by health visitors at some centres,
in which instruction was provided in home-making, budgeting, simple cookery and
so on. Health visitors also provided health education talks, gave advice on
feeding difficulties and the general management of children.
All health visitors keep in touch with general practitioners in their area
and there is also close co-operation with the staff of Childrens and Welfare
Departments and many voluntary organisations working within the Borough.
Details of clinic attendances for the year are given in Table 2, page 20.
Day Care of Children under 5
The Council provides Day Nurseries and occasional Creches under Section
22 of the National Health Service Act 1946 and has a duty under the Nurseries
and Chi ld-Minders Regulation Act 1948 (as amended by The Health Services and
Public Health Act 1968) to register and supervise persons undertaking the daily
minding of children and premises in which children are received for day care.
Day Nurseries
There are six day nurseries in the Borough and the demand for places is
such that a system of priorities governing admission is in operation (APPENDIX
A). Priority is given to those children whose mothers have to go out to work
through economic necessity or are unable through ill health to care adequately
for their children, and to children whose home conditions are detrimental to
their health and welfare.
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