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114
mid-september, 1929.
" It was found necessary to re-admit one boy who had been sent back to his
ordinary school. Whilst the discharge of 59 children as ' Fit E.S.' is gratifying,
it is well to remember that each future year will open with the handicap of a larger
number of children retained as still needing the open-air regime. Allowing for
this, there appears to be no reason why the school should not continue to maintain
a good discharge rate, and after having had charge of the medical work in the school
since April, 1928,1 believe that it is more fitted by its situation and nature for dealing
with the type of case ready for discharge after a year's stay, than for children suffering
from more chronic conditions. It is a school of this type that the contributory area
particularly needs.
" During the period of the great frost a large proportion of the children was
able to continue in attendance throughout this period of exceptionally severe weather.
The school staff did much to secure this by increasing the amoimt of physical exercises
and the provision of hot drinks.
" Medical inspection.—The school has been visited fortnightly for purposes
of medical examination and several special examinations have been held. An
attempt has been made to examine each child evqry three months, although absences
have made this difficult, and, in addition, each child is examined on the completion
of a year's stay. If a child be found unsuitable for discharge it is re-examined at the
end of a further period specified when the annual re-examination is made.
" The children remaining at the end of last year, and those admitted during
the present year, showed the following defects:—Anaemia, 74; defective nutrition,
68 ; lung diseases, 22; bronchitis, 14; fibrosis, 4; asthma, 4; heart conditions, 9;
organic, 3; functional, 6; enlarged cervical glands, 20 ; gastric disturbance, 7;
nervous conditions, 11; chorea, 4; instability, 6; infant paralysis, 1. Eight of