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11
The total inspections amounted to 349,715. To these must be added the
children, 129,867 in number, who were re-inspected because of some previously
noted defect.
As inspections of all kinds and re-inspections totalled no less than 479,582 it is
clear that, although some duplicate inspections are included, very few indeed of
the children in school escaped coming under the eye of the doctor in some way or
another during the course of the year.
Parents are invited to be present at all routine inspections, and attended in
76-9 per cent, of the examinations in the three prescribed age groups, compared with
78-5 per cent, in 1935 and 77-6 per cent, in 1934. At the inspection of entrants, the
proportion was 90-7 per cent., and in the "leaver" group 42-3 per cent. The
presence of the parent has a very considerable effect, and relieves very greatly the
task of following-up, as it eliminates the necessity for home visiting and correspondence.
Co-operation
of parents.
In view of the special character of the examination 01 tne 8-year-old group, the
results of their inspection will be separately treated in the following analysis of the
results. In accordance with the precedent of previous years, the results of inspection
of the leaver group will also be separately analysed.
Refusals of parents to submit children for medical inspection are so few in
number as to be almost negligible. During the year 1936, the parents of 58 children
(18 boys, 40 girls) being 7 less than in 1935 and 31 less than in 1934, refused to allow
them to be examined by one of the Council's assistant medical officers. Nine
objections were subsequently withdrawn, and in 8 instances medical record cards
were completed by a private medical practitioner.
The number of children subjected to routine inspection in the three prescribed
age groups who were referred for treatment was 54,677, 40-2 per cent, of the number
examined. This figure includes 39,363 cases noted by the school doctors for dental
treatment only, and, if these cases be excluded, the percentage is reduced to 15-9
compared with 15-8 in the previous year, and 15-5 in 1934.
The key-note of the medical service in the schools during the past three or four
years has been the careful assessment of the nutritional state of the children.
The state of
nutrition of
the children.
The Board of Education syllabus provides for every child to be marked during
routine inspection as " 1," " 2," " 3 " or " 4 " ; 1 being exceedingly good nutrition,
2 normal, 3 subnormal, and 4 definite pathological malnutrition.
The analysis, with regard to nutrition, of the results of routine medical inspection
in the elementary schools during 1936 is shown in the following table :—

On a careful clinical assessment of the state of the children's nutrition, assisted
by continuous growth charts made by the nurses, 16-66 per cent, of the children
are classed 1 (nutrition exceedingly good), and 77-35 per cent, are classed 2 (nutrition
normal), making 94-01 per cent, whose nutrition is satisfactory.
The remaining 5-99 per cent., whose nutrition was adjudged unsatisfactory,
were mainly in class 3, nutrition subnormal (5-92 per cent.), but 122 (-07 per cent.)
children out of 184,733 examined fell into class 4.