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There has been continued close contact between the Area Children s Office and the
Divisional Health Office to avoid children being taken into care when with some assistance
their needs could satisfactorily be met in their own homes. Full use has again
been made of day nurseries, home helps and child-minders.
Handicapped
children
Physiotherapists from the London Hospital now attend daily to treat the physically
handicapped children attending the Geffrye Primary School.
Chiropody
Seventy-seven chiropody sessions are held in the division each week and a high
level of attendances for treatment is maintained. The demand for foot treatment
continues to exceed the available resources. Priority is given to children and elderly
people.
Prophylaxis
During the year 2,265 children were vaccinated against smallpox, 3,042 completed
a primary course of immunisation against diphtheria and 4,826 received reinforcing
injections and 2,525 were immunised against whooping cough.
For the first time all 13-year-old schoolchildren in the division were offered B.C.G.
vaccination. 59.4 per cent. of the children were tested and of these 87.7 per cent. were
negative re-actors and were given an injection of B.C.G. vaccine.
The positive re-actors to the skin test (178) were given appointments for chest
X-ray and all but seven attended.
Occupational
therapy for
the
tuberculous
One schoolgirl was found to be suffering from active pulmonary tuberculosis.
Occupational therapy for home-bound tuberculous persons became available in
October, 1955 when two whole-time therapists took up their appointments. They
devote 14 half-day sessions each week to patients in division 4 and spend the balance
of their time in an adjoining division. Early indications are that this is a welcome and
useful addition to the tuberculosis service.
Home
nursing
and loan
equipment
The three District Nursing Associations continue to give a high standard of service
to sick persons being nursed at home. The steady demand for the loan of items of home
nursing equipment continues to be met.
Division 5, comprising the boroughs of Bethnal Green, Poplar, Stepney and the City
of London.
Dr. G. O. Mitchell reports :
Poliomyelitis
In London the epidemic of poliomyelitis struck first in this division, and in the late
spring cases began to occur in Stepney and Bethnal Green. On 10th June, after consultation
with the Borough Medical Officers of Health concerned, routine diphtheria
and whooping cough immunisation was stopped in the Council's clinics and schools
in Stepney and Bethnal Green; and at the request of the Stepney Borough Public
Health Committee leaflets were distributed by the teachers to schoolchildren in Stepney
for the information and reassurance of parents. As the disease gradually spread through
the division (with the exception of the City of London) the ban on routine immunisation
was extended, after consultation with the appropriate Borough Medical Officer of Health,
to the Isle of Dogs, Poplar, on 27th June, and eventually to the whole of Poplar on
5th July. With the waning of the outbreak in the late autumn routine immunisation
was recommenced on 14th November. The general practitioners in the divisions were
kept informed of these decisions about immunisation. In all 90 cases were notified
during the year, 67 non-paralytic and 23 paralytic, and 76 of these notifications were
of children below the age of 16 years. There were four deaths, three being of children
under four years of age.
Premises
Two new welfare centres were completed and brought into use in the division
during 1955, the Greenwood welfare centre, Peel Grove, Bethnal Green, and the
Will Crooks welfare centre, Wigram House, Poplar.
The proposal to build a centre on the Peel Grove site, adjacent to Bethnal Green
Town Hall, was initiated by the Bethnal Green Borough Council before 1948, but its
implementation was long delayed by difficulty in securing the necessary approval for
the commencement of the work because of restrictions then placed on expenditure
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