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130
A Joint Sub-Committee of the Education Committee and of
the Public Health Committee considered a report by the Medical
Officer of Health on a detailed scheme for the prevention of
crippling; it is hoped that definite proposals may be brought forward
in due course before each of the Committees.
FINDINGS OF MEDICAL INSPECTION.
Details of the defects found during medical inspection are set
out in Table 11 a and II B, at the end of this report.
Out of the 7,356 children examined as routine cases, 1,516, or
20.6 per cent., required treatment for conditions other than uncleanliness
and dental diseases.
(a) Uncleanliness.
Routine medical inspection does not, for obvious reasons,
afford a good measure of the prevalence of uncleanly conditions.
The suvevs made by the health visitors give a better guide, and
since the establishment early in the year of routine cleanliness
surveys at all the public elementary schools, the data resulting
from these inspections give a fair impression of the condition
attained in the various schools.
The health visitors during the course of their school surveys
for uncleanliness made 47,033 inspections of children, and found
body vermin in 5 cases, head vermin in 433, and nits alone in 4,074.
Thus, on the basis of these inspections, 9.5 per cent. of the children
seen showed evidence of infestation.
(b) Malnutrition.
115 children were found during routine inspection to need
treatment for malnutrition, and 69 were referred for observation.
Thus, out of the 7,356 children examined as routine cases, approximately
2.5 per cent showed evidence of malnutrition.
Particulars are given in a subsequent paragraph as to the
provision of meals at suitable premises, and of milk at school in
connection with a number of these cases of rhalnutrition.
(c) Defective Vision and External Eye Disease.
441 children, or 6.0 per cent. of those seen during routine inspection,
were found to show defective eyesight requiring treatment.