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medical care for mothers and young children. In 1948 these services
were extended in both directions. The general practitioner was, for the
first time, enabled to provide free medical attention for all members
of the family, whilst the duties of the local health authority, through
its Health Visitors, expanded to embrace not only mothers and children
but working adolescents, adults and the aged. There was, therefore,
a danger of some overlapping of functions which accentuated the
necessity for close co-operation between the general practitioner and
the local authority services.
In an "all purpose" authority, the area served by the Local
Executive Council corresponds to the Borough boundaries and the
Medical Officer of Health is usually a member both of the Executive
Council nd of its Local Medical Committee. In a two-tiered system
where the Local Executive Council covers the whole County this is
not practicable and many opportunities of co-ordination are thereby
lost.
In Barking the activities of the British Medical Association do
not provide a suitable substitute—once again boundaries providing
a stumbling block. The Stratford Division of the Association covers
the County Boroughs of East and West Ham and the Borough of
Ilford together with most, but not all, of Barking, certain practitioners
working at the Becontree end of the Borough belonging to the South
East Ess Division. I am hopeful that the Barking Medical Society
will soon resume its activities and, inter alia, provide valuable contact
between general practitioners and myself.
I am certain that we are moving steadily away from the suspicions
of the pre-1948 era when it was felt that your extensive services were in
competition with the private doctors, and it is with the greatest pleasure
that I acknowledge the help afforded me personally by many individual
doctors in 1953.
True co-operation, however, can only result from personal contact
between general practitioner and health visitor and a close understanding
of their respective functions. To further this, arrangements
were in hand at the end of the year for meetings at each of the clinics
to which family doctors working in the area will be invited to give
them the opportunity of meeting the health visitors and other members
of the local authority team.
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