London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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St Pancras 1922

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for St. Pancras, Metropolitan Borough]

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72
The children who are found to have defects are referred for treatment to their own private doctors
or arrangements are made for their treatment by the Council. The nature of these arrangements
vary a good deal, but in this borough they are referred to the school treatment centres, of which
there are now three. Two of them, at 26, Prince of Wales Road and 1 Churchway, respectively,
are managed by the St. Pancras Public Medical Service, and the third, the Highgate New Town
Clinic in Chester Road, by a separate committee. I happen to be secretary to both these bodies,
and can therefore briefly and comprehensively refer to the work done at all three. The year's
work under review is from April 1st, 1922, to March 31st, 1923.

To deal first with the work of the old-established centres in rnnce of Wales Koad and Churchway (Lancing Street):—

Dental Cases.Eye Cases.Ear Cases.Minor Ailments.
Prince of Wales Koad1,7921,1395881,244
Lancing Street1,4253591,013

These numbers represent cases seen, and not the number of attendances of these cases.
For instance, whilst at Prince of Wales Road, 1,244 children were treated for minor ailments,
these children actually attended nearly 25,000 times, and 1,013 cases seen at Lancing Street
represent 22,281 attendances.
In addition to this, at Prince of Wales Road, 3,141 children had their heads shampooed
and cleansed when in a verminous condition. This shampoo department has now completed
two years of work, and two women, under the supervision of a nurse, are fully employed. I
think this work is valuable and prevents in many cases the stigma attached to an attendance
at a cleansing station.
I wish again to express my appreciation of the good work done by the doctors and dental
surgeons, the nursing sisters and nurses, and the nurses of the Central St. Pancras Nursing Association
who are responsible for the minor ailment nursing.
To turn now to the Highgate New Town Clinic.
Some years ago, Sir W. H. Hamer approached the St. Pancras Public Medical Service
with a view to the provision of a new centre in the northern portion of the borough. For many
reasons this did not seem a feasible proposition, as there were many difficulties in the way. It
so happened that Mrs. Kohnstamm, the wife of Mr. R. Kohnstamm, of Hampstead, being greatly
interested in the work at Lancing Street, was able to interest Mr. Kohnstamm in school treatment
work. These two generous and large-minded people, having lost two sons in the war, conceived
the idea of perpetuating their memory by providing a school treatment centre in St. Pancras.
After somewhat prolonged negotiations with the County Council a scheme was worked out, and
a suitable site was procured from the Borough Council in Chester Road. In May of last year
Mr. F. R. Anderton, the chairman of the County Council, laid the foundation stone, and in January
of this year the centre commenced to work. This new building and venture will be a lasting
tribute to the generosity of Mr. and Mrs. Kohnstamm, the brave sons they wish to commemorate,
the architect, Mr. Oeorge Vicary, who took endless pains to embody and work out the ideas of
those who had a vision of what such a place should be, and it will be of lasting benefit to the
children of St. Pancras.
It is too soon to give exact details of its work, but I can briefly indicate what work it is
doing.
The building is in two floors; on the ground floor it functions as a general school treatment
centre, and eye cases, throat cases, minor ailment cases, and dental cases are dealt with, the
provision and equipment for such work being of the most modern character.