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41
Prevention of Tuberculosis.—As is in general the case the Dispensary continued
to prove most valuable, the members of the staff rendering excellent service
in relation to prevention work.
Particulars with regard to patients dealt with during the year are shown in
a table at page 44, while the following short table summarises the information as
to visits paid by Dr. Saner and the staff of the Dispensary :—
No. of visits by Tuberculosis Officer New, 52 Old, 88
No. of cases at Dispensary New, 414 Old, 1,406
No. of attendances at Dispensary 2,665
No. of visits by Miss Baker First visits, 189 Re-visits, 1,434
No. of visits by Miss Kenion First visits, 29 Re-vxsits, 1,124
No. of Committee Meetings attended 22
The Tuberculosis Care Committee continued to meet fortnightly throughout
the year, Dr. Saner, Miss Baker and Miss Kenion attending and assisting in every
way possible. The representatives of the Council on this Committee were:
Councillor P.O'Connell and Councillor G.B. Ramsay. In addition to the
Council's representatives this Committee includes Sir Francis Morris (Chairman,
representing St. Marylebone Board of Guardians), Miss Broadbent (Invalid Children's
Aid Association and St. Marylebone Guardians), Dr. Sykes, Divisional
Medical Officer, Miss Whitmore, District Organiser, Children's Cart Committee
(London County Council), Miss Bowen (Local War Pensions Committee), Miss
Higgin (Portland Town Association), Mrs. Hawthorne (Margaret Street Hospital),
Miss Price (Middlesex Hospital),Miss O. Lazarus (Central Jewish Synagogue),
Miss Wetherall, Senior Almoner (St. Mary's Hospital), Mrs. Somerville Hastings
(The Working Classes), and Miss Bennett (Paddington and St. Marylebone
District Nursing Association).
The Open Air School in Regent's Park, which was established in 1911, continued
its useful work during 1929, which, unfortunately, as is noted in the report
of Dr. Saner, proved to be the last year of its existence. A pioneer of schools of
this class, the school, primitive as it was, did work of sterling value, and the
resolution of thanks to the Committee and which with the entry on the Minutes, is
set out below, was well-earned :—
" Tuberculosis Dispensary—Open Air School, Regent's Park.
We have received the following Report from the Medical Officer of Health in
regard to (i) the closing of the Open Air School, which, for many years, has been
maintained in Regent's Park, in association with the Tuberculosis Dispensary,
and (ii) the excellent work which has been performed by the Commttee responsible
for the Organsation, and Mrs. Fitzgerald, the Teacher employed for these
purposes, namely :—
I have to report that at a recent meeting of the Open Air School Committee
it was decided to close the School at the end of this year. The reasons
for taking this step are partly the increasing difficulty in obtaining funds for
carrying on the work, and partly because its real objective has been attained,
namely, the encouragement of the open air school idea in the case of children
found to be suffering from tuberculosis in the early stages or who have for
one reason or another, because they were contacts with cases of tuberculosis
or presented signs of the disease, indicated that unless great care were taken
they might be attacked by the disease.
The number of open air schools provided by the London County Council
has been greatly increased, and there is now full opportunity for the admission
of suitable children to such schools.
The work done by the Open Air School in Regent's Park, not only in a
pioneer sense, but also on behalf of individual children has been of the greatest
vclue. Many who might quite readily have succumbed to the infection have