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Vaccination against poliomyelitis—In common with other parts of the county, wide
publicity and public interest just before Easter caused an unprecedented demand for
vaccination against poliomyelitis, particularly from teenagers and young persons aged
20-25 years.
Three Football League clubs in the division, Chelsea, Fulham and Queens Park Rangers,
were most helpful and not only arranged for their players to be vaccinated but also readily
agreed to give publicity to this service during matches played over the Easter holidays.
Attendances at open clinics and postal applications rose sharply. A special week of open
sessions each evening and on Saturday morning was held at the divisional health office
to meet this demand. Posters at divisional health establishments, borough council sites,
football grounds, coffee bars, London Transport underground stations, shop windows,
letters to some 600 firms in the area, broadcast announcements at Hammersmith Palais
dance hall, and articles and letters in the local Press were all used to give added publicity.
Total attendance at the open sessions during the special week was 4,250.
During the year a quarter of all the injections were given by general practitioners.
Mothercraft and homemaking classes—The two mothercraft and homemaking classes for
selected mothers in North Hammersmith and North Kensington respectively, arranged by
voluntary home advice groups, continued throughout the year and, following an application
from the Hammersmith group, a second class was started in that area in May.
Prevention of break-up of families—There were five policy meetings of the divisional
co-ordinating committee and 16 intermediate case conferences at which 49 families were
considered.
One full-time and two part-time social case workers were appointed to the division, the
second part-time social case worker to start work in January, 1960.
Home help—Home helps specially trained to assist mothers in all aspects of home management
and child care were supplied to 12 families and resident child helps were provided
in seven instances during the temporary absence of the mother, where there was no other
adult in the family, to look after the children and sleep in the home at night.
Day nurseries—The improvement noted in daily attendances at day nurseries in 1958
was maintained. Apart from minor variations in percentage weighting of registers no
alteration to the approved accommodation was made during the year.
Occasional creches—An additional occasional creche session was instituted at Lancaster
Road welfare centre, North Kensington (making three sessions in all), from 7 September
particularly for the convenience of mothers attending the mothercraft class at the centre
and those attending St. Charles hospital for treatment. The other two occasional creche
sessions at Glenthorne Road welfare centre continued.
Liaison with other bodies—In accordance with the recommendations of the Maternity
Services Committee a local maternity liaison committee for the Chelsea and the Fulham
and Kensington hospital groups was convened in December. The Council is represented
on the committee by the divisional medical officer, divisional nursing officer and the
supervisor of midwives for the division.
To improve the co-operation between Hammersmith hospital, the medical officers at
welfare centres and general practitioners, Professor McClure Browne held two meetings
at the hospital for local general practitioners and the Council's ante-natal medical officers
working in the division. One of the main topics of discussion was the selection of patients
for confinement at the hospital with special reference to late bookings.
A meeting of hospital almoners, health visitors, superintendents of district nursing
associations, tuberculosis care organisers, home help organisers and divisional staff was
held. Useful discussions took place on a variety of subjects, including the admission to
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