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Care
committees.

The above figures exclude cases of children referred by the Council to the
Invalid Children's Aid Association for residential treatment under an agreement
between the Council and the Association. The number of children so referred during
1922 was 273. At the end of 1922 there were 282 cases (206 adults and 76 children)
on the waiting list for residential treatment.
The Local Government Board, in 1915, suggested that metropolitan borough
councils should form tuberculosis care committees in connection with local dispensaries,
mainly for the purpose of co-ordinating the activities of public health officers, concerned
with the medical side of the work, and voluntary agencies, concerned with
the social side and with the function of providing aids to treatment, such
as additional food, change of air, clothing, better home conditions, etc. During the
war it was not found possible to proceed with the formation of care committees,
and the Council appointed interim committees to undertake the work. In May,
1922, the Minister of Health, after consultation with the Council, issued a circular
letter to metropolitan borough councils on the subject of the formation and functions
of care committees. The Minister suggested that the composition of the committees
should be generally on the lines of the circular of April, 1915, and should accordingly
be composed of representatives of local authorities, boards of guardians, insurance
committees and charitable and social work organisations in the district. The addition
of a representative of the Local War Pensions Committee, who should be especially
familiar with the circumstances of ex-service men in the area, was also suggested.
The functions of the care committees are generally to look after the welfare and
interests of patients, to render such advice and assistance as circumstances dictate,
with a view to enabling a family to adjust its circumstances to the new conditions
and to derive the fullest advantage from the medical treatment prescribed ; and
further, to co-ordinate voluntary effort for the provision of certain kinds of assistance
that may be needed in particular cases, e.g., additional food, change of air,
clothing, etc. A subsidiary but important function of the care committees is to undertake,
on behalf of the Council, the assessment of charges made in proper cases in
respect of residential treatment afforded to children and adults. As regards
expenses, approved expenditure incurred by borough councils in respect of office and
clerical expenses in connection with the care committees ranks for the Government
grant and the Council's grant towards the cost of the dispensary service. Proposals
are being submitted by metropolitan borough councils and, in some cases, have been
dealt with.
The dispensary service was the subject of a special survey in 1920†. As a
Tuberculosis
dispensaries
—survey of
their work.
* Figures for 1914-19 are given in the Annual Report for 1921 (vol. III., p. 62).
†Tuberculosis in London. Report of the Public. Health Committee. 1st July. 1920.
No. 2035. Price 6d. The development of the dispensary system was described in the Aunual
Report for 1920 (vol. III., p. 110).