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656
"The number of visits paid by the Health Visitors is the largest
yet, and their enthusiastic and conscientious work has borne great
fruit.
"The voluntary workers deserve the gratitude of the Ratepayers,
and I wish to thank them for their loyal, reliable work and
regular and punctual attendance."
Miss Reeve, the Superintendent Health Visitor, reports as
follows:
"Home visits take up the greater part of the morning. They
are greatly appreciated. Generally, it is owing to the success of the
home visits and the value of the advice given that the infants are
later brought to the Centres. Every endeavour has been made to
get the infants brought to the Centres, and mothers have been
recommended to come first on a consultation day, so that the infants
may be examined by the doctor.
"That the number of primary visits exceeds that of births is
due to families moving into the Borough, also to ante-natal visits.
"The afternoons are arranged as last year—three being taken
up by Consultations and Weighings, one by the Ante-Natal Consultation,
and one by a Needlework Class.
"Attendances of mothers for advice covers interviews of all
kinds. Some being reports re infants or children left at home
either through ill-health or bad weather. Others calling for advice
re children left at home for the same reasons. Others are Milk
Order interviews or requests for advice on many and varied social
problems. These range from queries re mothers' pensions and
foster mothers or institutions, to those re the Rent Act, sanitary
conditions and the various charitable agencies or funds.
"The Needlework Class, though small, does good work. A
larger number of mothers expecting their first baby now attend.
Many infants thus become " woolly babies " at, or soon after, birth.
To this end special attention is given to the provision of suitable
wools.