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36
There is much more work waiting to be done, and it is
unfortunate that the services available are only sufficient for the
ordinary day to day routine.
I do feel that not only in Barking but throughout the whole
of the country much good would accrue if all services were sufficient
for reasonable time to be allowed for independent research, which
would naturally proceed along the lines presented by each several
authority.
(24) MISCELLANEOUS.
Two young persons who desired to become bursars and student
teachers were medically examined during the year by a private
medical practitioner, neither being rejected on medical grounds.
This closes the report for the year 1929. 1930 opens up new
vistas.
It is wise to pause and reflect, and I would urge you to remember
that although this report deals with much work of an inspectorial
nature and much work which is essentially curative, the aim of the
service as a whole is that " Prevention is better than cure."
The School Medical Service is a branch of preventive medicine
and indeed the curative work is undertaken in the confident
expectation that any such strictly curative measures will prevent
the incidence of more serious illnesses and disabilities.
One of the problems which will present itself to you on the
development of the Becontree Estate is the possibility of
co-ordinating maternity and child welfare and school work.
The number of Inspectors and so forth visiting the homes of
the people to-day is enormous, and anything which can be done
to check the number of inspectors has much to commend it.
It would be possible to redistribute the work, whereby maternity
and child welfare work and school work would be carried out in
any one area by one nurse.