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authorities had pointed out the prevalence of myopia in school children, and the
School Board for London appointed in February, 1902, eight part-time oculists to
supervise the examination of the vision of school children. Dr. James Kerr was
in this year (1902) appointed whole-time medical officer in place of Sir William R.
Smith, and three part-time assistant medical officers were also appointed. At this
date, also, there was appointed one school nurse (Miss Lockington), whose duty
it was to deal with ringworm, which had long been causing much loss of school
attendance. Under Dr. Kerr's direction all these threads, which formed the
beginnings of children's care, were gathered into one skein, and an active school
medical department came into existence.
Meanwhile a series of important committees and commissions were enquiring
into the state of the health of children, and the publication of their reports and the
evidence given before them, coming one after another like the peals of a thunderous
organ, immediately bore fruit in facilitating the work of the school medical department
and later led to legal enactments ensuring the permanency and orderly growth
of the work. The Inter-departmental Committee on Employment of School Children
reported in 1902 and the Royal Commission on Physical Training in Scotland in
1903, the Inter-departmental Committee on Physical Deterioration in 1904 and
the Committee on Medical Inspection and Feeding of Children attending Public
Elementary Schools, in 1905.
The Balfour Act (for London) passed in 1903, forms a great landmark,as it placed
the education work under the London County Council, and prepared the way for the
fusion of the school medical department with the public health department. It
also for the first time made a comprehensive review of the condition of all school
children possible by bringing the non-provided schools under the direction of the
Education Committee.
In 1907 the McKenna Act made the medical inspection of children compulsory
and gave the power to the education authority to provide medical treatment. This
led to great addition to the work under Dr. Kerr and a large increase in the staff
of school doctors and nurses. Meanwhile there had been extension of the special
schools, and special classes for myopic children and children hard of hearing had
been established. Investigations upon measles, scarlet fever and diphtheria in the
schools had enabled the department to frame a code of rules for the control of these
and other infectious diseases and, with the growth of the school nursing service,
cleansing schemes were commenced in every school.
The large amount of defect among school children revealed by medical inspection
led to special arrangements with the voluntary hospitals for their treatment,
and, where these failed, to the establishment of special school treatment centres.
The growing work of children's care, embracing not only the following up of defective
children, but the administration of the Feeding of School Children Act (1906) and
the Choice of Employment Act (1910) led to the establishment of the voluntary
school care committee system of London, of which Miss T. M. Morton became the
principal organiser.
A further step in evolution took place in 1912, when the school medical work
was placed under the direction of the medical officer of the County; the medical
treatment of school children hitherto administered by the Education Officer was
also transferred to his direction. Dr. Kerr acted as Research Medical Officer, and
later Miss Morton became also an officer (part-time) of the public health department.
In this way the whole of the medical inspection, following up and treatment was
consolidated under one direction and the work was completely co-ordinated with
the other medical work of the Council. This gave opportunities for further advance.
The School Medical Service was organised in five divisions (each under a divisional
medical officer) and the staff of school doctors and nurses was largely strengthened.
From 1912 to the present time there has been a remarkable increase