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The steady decrease in the total number of inspections is the result of an increased
emphasis on selective examinations.
The percentage of verminous children as between boys, girls and infants has remained
roughly static with the highest incidence amongst girls.

Review of medical inspection arrangements
My report for 1956 (page 99) mentioned that a departmental committee was reviewing
the whole field of school medical inspection. Their report was received by the Education
Committee in October, 1958, and a number of changes were approved to become
effective on 1 January, 1959. The major recommendations were as follows:
(a) At least four general medical inspections should be carried out during a pupil's
school life.
(b) Inspections should take place on entry to each new school or department.
(c) All pupils should be inspected in the term before their 15th birthday and before
leaving school.
(d) Personal hygiene inspections should be replaced by ' health surveys'.
(e) All pupils should receive an annual comprehensive health survey.
(/) Selective health surveys, at the discretion of the divisional medical officer, should
replace the routine hygiene inspection of all pupils once a term.
(g) Vision should be tested at each periodic inspection after the 'entrant to infants'
inspection, and also at age 7. If and when vision testing at age 5 years is introduced, the
test at age 7 should be discontinued.
(h) The 13-year-old vision test by school health visitors should be discontinued.
(i) Routine weighing and measuring should be discontinued.
(j) Annual secondary school medical surveys should be discontinued.
(k) Whilst inspections of school journey parties covered by insurance policies will
need to be continued, parties going to Marchants Hill and Sayers Croft should be seen
only by a school health visitor prior to departure.
(/) The separate procedure for the automatic re-inspection each term of certain
pupils receiving milk, meals or vitamins should be discontinued.
(m) Tuberculosis contacts should not be automatically re-inspected by the schoo
doctor.
The following extracts from the report summarise the grounds upon which the
recommendations were based:—
106