View report page

83
invitation was very good indeed; 29 local general medical practitioners
attended as well as ten health visitors and several members of the Area
medical staff.
During the year follow-up of cases reported by family doctors has
enabled health visitors to visit a number of patients and deal with their
particular problems.
Team work with hospital almoners and ward sisters has been
excellent. 126 health visitors reports have been sent to hospitals at
the request of almoners during the year and 167 to other bodies,
excluding 433 B.C.G. follow-up reports for the Medical Research
Council.
Co-operation and assistance from statutory and voluntary organisations
have been of considerable value to health visitors in their work.
We should like to mention the Children's and Social Welfare Departments,
the local offices of the National Assistance Board, the N.S.P.C.C.,
I.C.A.A., W.V.S., Old Peoples' Welfare and Diocesan Moral Welfare.
Clinic voluntary workers in the Hornsey part of the Area have given
regular, reliable and very valuable services in infant welfare clinics
and in managing the sale and distribution of welfare foods.
Health Education and Parentcraft
Apart from home visiting for such purposes as advice to expectant
mothers, infant care and feeding, follow-up for hospital admissions
and discharges, family doctors cases, clinic attenders, special surveys
including the recent one for the Ministry of Health on National Dried
Milk, care of the aged, problem families, etc., when educational advice
is given, health education is a continuous process for health visitors
wherever their duties take them.
During the past few years a special feature of health education has
been the talks on home making and parentcraft to school children
especially during their last year at school. This year all the secondary
modern girls' schools except one have received this type of instruction
from a school health visitor who spends the major part of term time on
this work. In Tottenham health visitors undertake this important
task in schools. In all 348 talks, films and demonstrations of one hour
each have been given in schools.
Training of Health Visitor Students
Thirteen student health visitor received practical training for varying
periods in the Area during the year. Eight of these were taking their
training under the auspices of the Royal College of Nursing, one at
Battersea Polytechnic and four through the County Council "Sponsored
Scheme". The latter commenced their training in September and will
remain in the Area for three terms.