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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1931
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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London County Council
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COUNCIL, 1931
VOL. III (Part II)
REPORT OF THE SCHOOL MEDICAL OFFICER FOR THE YEAR 1931.
By Sir Frederick Menzies, K.B.E., M.D., F.R.C.P., D.P.H., F.R.S.E., County
Medical Officer of Health and School Medical Officer.
Introduction.
In presenting the following report on the work of the school medical service
during 1931, there is nothing spectacular to which I desire to draw attention. The
steady progress recorded in recent years has been maintained despite the urgent
need for retrenchment in public expenditure which reached a climax in September.
It is recognised that the work of the school medical service is of outstanding value
and of fundamental importance to the health and consequently to the welfare of
the rising generation; hence the calls for curtailment of expenditure were not so
insistent as in other spheres of municipal activity. Nevertheless, in any large service
it is essential at frequent intervals to survey every aspect of the work for the purpose
of clearing away anything which is obsolete or redundant, and of ensuring that every
penny is well spent. The opportunity was taken, in the latter portion of the year,
of reviewing every detail of the work, and any economies which could be made
without impairment of efficiency were effected.
An indication of the development of the service is given by the following figures which compare 1931 with 1911 and 1921:—
| 1911. | 1921. | 1931. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| (1) Total number of children examined in age groups | 184,862 | 217,333 | 218,999 |
| (2) Percentage referred for treatment (excluding dental caries) | 380 | 19.8 | 18.5 |
| (3) Percentage of children referred for treatment of defects found satisfactory on re-inspection | 42.5 | 78.2 | 81.6 |
| (4) Total number treated under Council's scheme | Provision for 26,000 | 218,332 | 306,724 |
| (5) Number inspected by dentists | — | 151,395 | 268,545 |
| (6) Number of hospitals and centres under the treatment scheme | 6 | 70 | 105 |
| (7) Percentage found ill-nourished at routine medical examinations | 9.6 | 5.5 | 4.5 |
| (8) Percentage found unclean at routine medical examinations | 9.8 | .9 | .5 |
| (9) Percentage with discharging ears at routine medical examinations | 2.2 | 1.1 | .7 |
| (10) Number of ringworm cases found in the schools | 6,214 | 3,473 | 420 |
A recent addition to the work of the school medical officer is responsibility for
the health of the 7,000 children in the residential schools transferred to the Council
by the Local Government Act, 1929. Arrangements have been made to sift, out the
defective children and transfer them to special schools : this benefits not only the
children transferred, but also the normal children in the residential schools where the
defective children had hampered the work. A special scheme has also been introduced
(page 92) for the better control of the spread of infectious disease which incidentally
has enabled a certain amount of valuable accommodation in " quarantine " blocks
to be made available for other purposes : steps are being taken to immunise the
children in many of the schools against diphtheria (page 94) and for an improved
dietary to be introduced (page 16).
1000 (m«0. 12433—761.) 5.7.32. (1)
b