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Infant Welfare Clinics
The clinics continue to be appreciated particularly by the young
mothers of the Area and attendances have been much the same as in
previous years. A considerable amount of the health visitor's time
is spent with the mothers of very young babies who attend frequently
in the early weeks until they have gained confidence in handling their
own child. The need of a mother for re-assuring support and
advice during the early weeks following the birth of her child is
apparent to everyone working in the clinics. At this time the
mother may be faced with a physiological mild depression following
the birth as well as with the new baby. Visits are usually less
frequent as the baby gets older but often the problems presented are
more serious.
In some cases the staff at the clinics find medical defects in
the child, of which the mother was unaware, and they arrange for
treatment to be carried out. Far more often, however, they find
themselves reassuring mothers that certain suspected defects in the
baby are within normal limits and that there is no need for them
to seek treatment. This happens in cases of alleged tongue-tie,
mild forms of umbilical hernia, certain types of naevi (birth marks)
and mild forms of flat feet; all of which can occur for a short
time in healthy children. Another trend towards a reversal in
recent practice is seen in the advice given on certain behaviour
disorders. The staff in recent years has worked hard to persuade
mothers to take a more understanding and lenient attitude towards,
for example, sleep problems, food refusal, and toilet training. Some
mothers have conscientiously taken this a little too far and seem
afraid to make even the mildest regulations for their babies, letting
them do exactly as they please at all times. So now the clinic
staff have to urge the introduction of some order and discipline in
an increasing number of cases.
All babies attending the clinics continue to have urine tests for
phenylketonuria (a sign which shows that the child has an inborn error
of metabolism which can lead to mental disorder) but in spite of the
large number tested no case has, as yet, been confirmed.
Toddlers Clinics
The clinics are held mainly by appointment. Cards are sent
to the mothers at about the time of the child's birthday and at sixmonthly
intervals inviting them to bring their children between the age
of two and five for routine medical inspection. Time is also
available for any mother who wishes to come with her young child
without appointment and for those where more frequent examinations
are considered advisable. Almost all the children are seen by the
doctor and the interviews are unhurried particularly where problems
discussed relate to behavious disorders. At this age considerable
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