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41
DENTAL TREATMENT
Maternity and Child Welfare Patients.
Expectant and nursing mothers requiring dental attention are
referred by Medical Officers attending Municipal Ante- and PostNatal
Clinics. In the case of children below school age reference
comes chiefly from Infant Welfare Centres; an appreciable
number of applications continue, however, to be received from
Day Nurseries and similar institutions still in operation.
Since the commencement of the National Health Service all
those attending ante-natal clinics are automatically referred for a
routine dental examination, unless they are in the habit of attending
their own dental practitioner. Though as yet not all those
referred avail themselves of this opportunity, it is felt that the
practice is a good one and should be adhered to as far as possible.
For the third year in succession there has been a reduction
in the number of expectant and nursing mothers undergoing
attention at the Local Authority's Dental Clinics. This has come
about partly as a result of the continued fall in the birth-rate since
the post-war peak period, and also on account of the introduction
of alternate sources of treatment by the Health Act of 1946. Whilst
it is too early to assess whether these effects will be permanent, it
seems likely that, provided reasonable priority can be given by
private practitioners the major part of this work will continue
to be dealt with outside the Municipal schemes.
In contrast with the ante-natal work recent legislation has
done little to diminish the responsibilities of the local services in
respect to the pre-school child, and attendances on this side have
continued to show a healthy upward trend. A contributing
cause in this respect is the fact that the majority of private practitioners
are already fully occupied in dealing with adult requirements,
and find difficulty to offer adequate facilities for patients
of this type. In, addition to this due credit should be accorded
to those officiating at Welfare Centres for their continued efforts
in bringing defects to the notice of parents and arranging for
subsequent visits to the clinic.
Expectant and Nursing Mothers.
The total number of expectant and nursing mothers referred
from all sources was 393 compared with 570 in 1950. For the first
time fewer cases were notified from ante-natal clinics than by the
Municipal Midwives Service. With certain limited exceptions