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Under section 28 of the National Health Service Act, 1946, the Council's male and
female welfare officers have continued to undertake the tracing of contacts of patients,
details of whom have been provided by hospitals, by medical services of the British,
Dominion and United States Armed Forces, and by local health authorities. The welfare
officers have also been available to assist clinics in case of difficulty in following up
patients who have defaulted.
At the request of the Prison Commissioners the part-time services of a welfare
officer were made available during 1950 for attendance at clinics at Holloway Prison
and for following up contacts and prisoners on discharge, and arrangements were made
in 1952 for the appointment of a whole-time welfare officer to undertake this work.
Despite the many difficulties encountered, good results continued to be achieved in
overcoming the reluctance of prisoners to attend out-patient clinics on discharge or,
where necessary, to complete treatment in hospital. The task of following-up patients
and their families for the purpose of securing tests involves much visiting and enquiry
and is carried out in close co-operation with Probation Officers and other social workers
engaged in this field.
Thirty-three notifications were received from the Service authorities of demobilised
men who were under treatment or surveillance for V.D. and these men were interviewed
with a view to persuading them to continue attendance at civilian clinics.
Recuperative holidays
In 1948 demands for recuperative holidays outstripped the available accommodation.
Recuperative holiday home accommodation has increased during the intervening years,
and now there is sufficient accommodation for all categories of persons medically
recommended for a recuperative holiday. Accommodation for mothers and babies
has been particularly difficult to obtain, and in addition to using the larger type of
recuperative holiday home a policy has recently been followed of using small private
residences accommodating one or two mothers with their babies, where the mothers
live in with the family.
The Council uses accommodation (36 places) in its own recuperative holiday home
for children at Roland House, Littlehampton and makes a 90 per cent. grant towards the
approved maintenance expenditure of the Women's Voluntary Services' recuperative
holiday home for children at Aldeburgh, in return for which it has the first claim on the
beds at the home. Selected children in parties of 30 are sent to a private hotel on the Kent
coast and their supervision is undertaken by a holiday organiser and two assistants.
Persons are also sent to homes belonging to voluntary organisations, and to those under
private ownership.
Recuperative holidays are provided for expectant and nursing mothers and children
under five years of age under section 22 of the National Health Service Act, 1946, and
under section 28 for other adults. No charge is made to school children for recuperative
holidays provided under the Education Act, 1944, but a standard charge, subject to
abatement, is made to other categories of persons sent for recuperative holidays under