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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67
Wage-earning employment of school children
In the year 1938, 3,941 applications (3,908 boys and 33 girls) were dealt with
under the by-laws for medical certificates in connection with the employment of
school children out of school hours. Unconditional certificates were issued in
3,567 instances, which included 30 girls. Conditional certificates were issued in 270
cases, one being a girl. Certificates were withheld in 104 instances, two being girls.
In 57 of these the reasons for refusal were non-medical.
Medical
grounds
for refusal
The conditions which led to refusal in the other 47 cases were:—
| Boys | Girls | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rheumatism | 9 | – | 9 |
| Teeth | 4 | – | 4 |
| Vision and eyes | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Heart | 5 | – | 5 |
| Anæmia and malnutrition | 2 | – | 2 |
| T.B. glands | 1 | – | 1 |
| Otorrhœa | 3 | – | 3 |
| Personal hygiene | 2 | – | 2 |
| Fatigue signs | 2 | – | 2 |
| General condition | 15 | – | 15 |
| Flat feet | 1 | – | 1 |
| Total | 46 | 1 | 47 |
Employment
of children
in entertainments
Two hundred and ninety-five children were medically examined at the County
Hall in connection with employment under licence in entertainments, comprising
252 girls and 43 boys. Of these, 131 were referred for treatment, including:
refraction error, 17; dental decay, 76; throat affections, 1; skin disease, 11;
personal hygiene, 14; discharging ears, 1; anæmia, rheumatism or heart trouble, 5;
scoliosis, 2 ; minor ailments, 4.
Six were refused certificates on account of the presence of the following conditions
: heart disease, 2; high myopia, 2; osteomyelitis, 1; enuresis, 1.
Three hundred and fifty-nine re-examinations were made.
Examination of candidates for the education service and scholars
The total number of examinations in 1938 was 12,765, compared with 12,044
in 1937 and 12,252 in 1936. During 1938, 10,022 entrants to the education service,
and candidates for teaching awards, scholarships, and local special places, presented
themselves for examination; of these, 61 had been referred from 1937. The following
table indicates the numbers of candidates and the results of the examinations:—
Table 35
| Category | Number examined | Number fit | Number rejected | Number who withdrew after being referred for remediable defects or were not due for reexamination until 1939 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | Female | Male | Female | Male | Female | Male | Female | |
| Education service | 297 | 293 | 267 | 288 | 13 | 5 | 17 | – |
| Royal Air Force candidates | 14 | – | 11 | – | 3 | – | ||
| Teaching awards | 113 | 428 | 113 | 406 | – | 8 | – | 14 |
| Scholarships | 4,542 | 4,335 | 4,353 | 4,160 | 50 | 10 | 139 | 165 |
| Total | 4,966 | 5,056 | 4,744 | 4,854 | 66 | 23 | 156 | 179 |
| 10,022 | 9,598 | † 89 | 335 | |||||
† The main causes of rejection were defects of vision, and diseases of the heart and ears.