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(d) To collaborate with the Clinical Research Committee of the public
health department of the London County Council.
The proposal has met with an enthusiastic reception and some 300 medical
officers from the Council's staff have joined as foundation members. The honorary
secretary is Dr. Eli Davis and the County Medical Officer of Health accepted the
invitation of the Council of the Society to become its first president.
Clinical
Research
Committee
In June, 1939, the Clinical Research Committee, representative of medical
officers in the Council's hospitals and laboratories, was established. Among its
main objects are:—
(1) To assist medical officers of the London County Council in
research;
(2) To advise medical officers in their researches and to assist in
making available to them the resources of the Council hospitals and medical
services;
(3) To appoint sub-committees to make surveys of the results of
treatment and to carry out special clinical investigations;
(4) To report to the medical officer of health on the value of any
particular line of research and the methods by which such could be assisted;
(5) To consider and report to the medical officer of health, when
requested, upon applications from outside workers for research facilities
in the Council's hospitals;
(6) To consider and report to the medical officer of health upon the
use of new appliances and drugs;
(7) To take any steps that may appear desirable for the furtherance
of research in the Council's hospitals.
The Committee has met regularly during the war and 27 meetings have been
held up to December, 1944. Various sub-committees have been set up to carry out
special investigations, and much work of an extremely useful nature has been carried
out.
Staff
The Council adopted the recommendations contained in the second report of
the Nurses Salaries (Rushcliffe) Committee relating to male nurses, public health
nurses and nursing staff in residential nurseries. The recommendations of the
Mental Nurses Sub-Committee of the Nurses Salaries Committee were also adopted,
and applied so far as applicable to staff in the mental observation units.
In connection with the provisions of the Nurses Act, 1943, requiring the undertaking
of prescribed training by candidates for admission to the roll of assistant
nurses to be kept by the General Nursing Council, a regional preliminary training
school for assistant nurses was established at St. Francis Hospital.
A new grade of nursing staff possessing prescribed Nursery Nurses' Certificates
obtained after college training and designated nursery nurse, class I, was introduced
for employment in nurseries.
In view of the importance placed by Government departments on the rehabilitation
and resettlement of disabled persons, the facilities available in the Council's
general and special hospitals for this work were extended and developed. Doctors
and physiotherapists were given facilities to attend special courses of instruction
on rehabilitation at selected rehabilitation centres, and extended provision was
made for the employment of occupational therapists and physical training
instructresses.
The considerable additional responsibility which necessarily devolved on most
of the stewards and assistant stewards in the hospitals service from the outbreak
of war was recognised by the grant of special allowances of varying amounts up to