View report page

78
with due regard to the convenience of the schools; for instance, in
schools like Sydenham Road, which are crowded and have no
teacher's room, we endeavour to get medical inspection done during
the summer time, when a fine day may allow of the head teacher
placing a classroom at our disposal by transference of the pupils to
the playground. The inspections have also to be fitted in with the
work of the health visitors, who cannot conveniently give more
than one whole day per week to this work, and some of whom have
special duties in connection with the school clinic. An endeavour
is also made to select for early inspection any school the head
master or head mistress of which has made a request for the
special examination of scholars not coming within the group
named in the Code. All these requirements have to be carefully
adjusted in mapping out the work of the assistant medical officer,
but I cannot speak too highly of the care with which this work has
been done. It is partly owing to this improvement in our organisation
that the number of children inspected during 1910 was considerably
higher than in 1909.
The arrangements for the work of the ophthalmic surgeon during
1910 were in accordance with the plan mentioned in my last Annual
Report.
All the schools in the borough were divided into two groups of
about equal size. At those nearest the Town Hall the preliminary
examination of the sight was made by the school medical officer or
his assistant, and any children requiring special examination by the
ophthalmic surgeon were referred to him at the Town Hall, where
he was in attendance on Tuesday mornings. Eye work in the more
distant schools was carried out by Mr. Wray as heretofore by visits
to the respective schools.
BOARD'S SCHEDULE OF MEDICAL INSPECTION.
No change has been made in the schedule, which was adopted
in its entirety. Speaking generally, the use of this schedule has
been much the same as in 1908 and 1909. The duty cast upon
Local Authorities by the Education (Administrative Provisions)
Act, 1907, is to provide for the medical inspection of children
attending Schools, and anything like a complete examination has
only been made when the history or the general appearance of the.
child indicated the necessity for so doing.
As mentioned in previous reports, only quite a superficial
inspection is possible in some of the schools, as there is no spare
room in which the necessarv privacy and freedom from noise can be
secured for a more thorough examination of the children.