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78
other commodities. At the end of the year 499 tuberculous persons were receiving
extra nourishment from Council or care committee resources. In addition to providing
food, clothing, etc., as outlined above, the Council's after-care organisers
also arranged or tried to arrange for patients, better housing, more suitable employment,
foster homes for child contacts, diversional therapy and gave help or
guidance in numberless other problems of personal or family concern. It may be
mentioned here that necessitous tuberculous persons receive higher financial grants
from the National Assistance Board than do other necessitous persons.
The following extracts from a number of current annual reports of care committees
illustrate the activities, difficulties and value of these voluntary organisations:—
"Members of the Tuberculosis Care Committee represent local
bodies or interests which already have to deal with the problems of the tuberculous.
They bring to the Committee's meetings, special knowledge of a
particular field of public or voluntary service, as well as their individual concern
for those who suffer from the disease."
"The increasing cost of living has made life more difficult for our families
during the year, and although National Assistance Board scale rates were
raised slightly in July, it is undoubtedly true that many families who receive
only the bare statutory allowances are having a hard struggle."
"For many years the Committee has given Christmas presents to needy
families. In 1950 thirty-two gifts and twenty-six grocery vouchers were
distributed."
"In order that patients may not suffer, we are obliged to spend more now
on pyjamas, dressing-gowns and bedroom slippers. The rise in cost of bed
linen, blankets and night apparel is alarming and a serious drain on our
resources."
"During the year 17 men and 11 women have had recuperative holidays
we are indeed grateful to those who have made it possible for these
patients to get rest and change, away from their drab surroundings."
Divisional
Tuberculosis
Care
Committees
A Divisional Care Committee has been appointed by each Divisional Health
Committee to co-ordinate the activities of the Tuberculosis Care Committees, SubCommittees
or other groups of persons authorised by the Divisional Care Committee
to deal with tuberculosis care work in the division.
Boarding-out
of child
contacts
As in previous years, children were boarded-out under the Council's tuberculosis
contact scheme when they were exposed to infection at home or when their parent
or parents were receiving institutional or home treatment for tuberculosis with
consequent difficulties in the care of the children. In addition, boarding-out was
arranged in connection with B.C.G. (Bacillus Calmette-Guerin) vaccination when
it was thought necessary to segregate children from known cases. The arrangements
for boarding-out were made on behalf of the Council by the Invalid Children's Aid
Association, who experienced a continued shortage of suitable foster homes. A few
child tuberculosis contacts were admitted during the year to accommodation provided
by the Council in its residential schools, homes and nurseries, but greater use was
made of private nurseries and homes. At the end of the year 318 children remained
accommodated with foster mothers and in private nurseries and homes and 115 in
the Council's establishments for deprived children.
The average number boarded-out at any one time during the year was 405
compared with between 130 and 140 before 1939, 180 in 1946, 230 in 1947, 257 in
1948 and 326 in 1949. The total number of children accommodated during the
year was 759 of whom 448 were new cases and 311 were children whose stay extended
from 1949.