London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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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 1938
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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Rota visits to
the schools
53
The following statement gives an analysis of the 297 cases examined for admission to special schools for the physically defective, as a result of which the children were either returned to elementary schools or were invalided as for the time unfit for any school:—
Table 28
| Morbid conditions | Elementary school | Invalided |
|---|---|---|
| Infantile paralysis | 14 | 2 |
| Cerebral paralysis | 1 | 4 |
| Various paralyses | 5 | 2 |
| Tuberculosis of bones and joints | 10 | 1 |
| Osteomyelitis | 25 | — |
| Rickets and resulting deformities | 5 | — |
| Congenital deformities | 14 | 2 |
| Spinal deformities (including scoliosis) | 9 | 2 |
| Traumata and amputations | 8 | |
| Non-tuberculous arthritis and synovitis | 14 | _ |
| Rheumatism and chorea | 23 | 1 |
| Various chest conditions—fibrosis, bronchitis, asthma | 35 | 7 |
| Heart diseases— | ||
| Congenital | 13 | 2 |
| Acquired valvular— | ||
| with history of rheumatism | 32 | 4 |
| without history of rheumatism | 6 | — |
| Non-valvular— | ||
| with history of rheumatism | 2 | — |
| without history of rheumatism | 6 | — |
| Anaemia | 14 | — |
| Pseudo-hypertrophic muscular dystrophy | — | 1 |
| Various nervous conditions, ataxia, etc. | 1 | _ |
| Other diseases—chiefly medical | 25 | 7 |
| Total | 262 | 35 |
Children
returned
to elementary
schools or
invalided
As a result of the rota examinations the following re-classifications took place :—
Table 29
| Transferred from schools for | Re-classified for transfer to— | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P.D. school | M.D. school | Partially sighted school | Blind school | Deaf school | Partially deaf school | Open- air school | Epileptic colony | Swanley eye hospital | |
| Physically defective | — | 6 | — | — | — | _ | 3 | _ | 1 |
| Mentally defective | 1 | — | 1 | — | — | 1 | — | 1 | 9 |
| Partially sighted. | 2 | 1 | — | 8 | — | — | — | — | 2 |
| Blind | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Deaf | — | _ | _ | — | — | 1 | — | — | — |
| Partially deaf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Epileptic colony | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
After trial in a special school, 89 children were excluded (24 as imbecile, 34 as
feeble—minded ineducable, 3 as "special circumstances," and 6 as feeble—minded
"detrimental," and 22 invalided on medical grounds).