London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1953
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
This page requires JavaScript
72
Home visits
HEALTH VISITING AND NURSING SERVICES
An average of 369 health visitors were occupied during the year in connection with the various health services apart from the tuberculosis service and the school health service. During 1953, these health visitors made 832,504 visits, apart from clinic and other duties. The following table analyses the visits paid since the beginning of 1951 :
| 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Expectant mothers— | |||
| First | 25,439 | 25,226 | 24,608 |
| Revisit | 19,311 | 18,708 | 19,223 |
| Per cent. of notified live and stillbirths | 46 | 47 | 47 |
| Premature babies— | |||
| First | 1,601 | 1,834 | 1,894 |
| Revisit | 4,552 | 5,509 | 4,476 |
| Still-births— | |||
| First | 918 | 930 | 921 |
| Revisit | 390 | 349 | 335 |
| Per cent. of still births | 86 | 90 | 87 |
| Children under 1— | |||
| First | 49,605 | 48,755 | 46,487 |
| Revisit | 180,901 | 183,816 | 168,833 |
| Per cent. of live births | 92 | 91 | 90 |
| Children 1 to 5— | |||
| First | 5,188 | 4,572 | 7,485 |
| Revisit | 387,383 | 377,986 | 368,668 |
| Infectious diseases | 26,518 | 13,396 | 13,774 |
| Miscellaneous | 48,334 | 51,278 | 51,676 |
| Unsuccessful | 137,108 | 131,748 | 124,124 |
| TOTAL | 887,247 | 864,107 | 832,504 |
Progress continues to be made in integrating the work of health visiting and school
nursing, and in extending the function of the health visitor to cover the care and welfare
of the family as a whole. To this end of caring for the family there has been gradually
increasing co-operation and consultation between health visitor, general practitioner
and voluntary and statutory organisations which serve the family. Experiments are
being carried out towards integrating the preventive and curative services where health
visitors have been allocated to work with the doctors in two group practices and with
specialists at paediatric hospital clinics.
Child life
protection
By arrangement with the Children's Officer, responsibility has been continued for duties
under Part XIII of the Public Health (London) Act, 1936, as amended by Part V of the
Children Act, 1948. The visiting of foster-children and the inspection of the premises
in which the children are living have continued to be undertaken by health visitors
designated as child protection officers Towards the end of the year, 690 children were
being supervised under these arrangements.
Tuberculosis
visitors
One of the most important functions of the tuberculosis visitor is the visiting carried
out in the home. It is now the practice for long-term chemotherapy to be given which
involves more frequent visiting, not only to the patient, but also to encourage the regular
attendance of contacts at chest clinics. Where conditions are suitable, parents of child
contacts are encouraged to take their children to the chest clinics for B.C.G. vaccination.
Health
education
Health visitors have continued to assist in Polytechnics and Institutes in training
courses and refresher courses for nursery matrons, nursery nurses, wardens and housemothers
and in pre-nursing courses held in schools. There has been an increase in the
amount of mothercraft teaching undertaken in schools.