Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Croydon]
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Part-time staff was rather below the. average for recent years
and fell from 404 to 351 sessions.
As in previous years treatment poses the difficult problem
of maintaining a reasonable standard for the individual without
unduly delaying the call up of those awaiting attention. Because
of this a purely clinical approach cannot always be justified,
and measures undertaken must conform to the patient's more obvious
requirements in later life. For this reason conservation
of deciduous teeth, though excellent in its way, must be restricted
to those specially involved in preserving the dental arch.
In dealing with large departments a system of priorities, noted
at the time of the inspection, has been successfully operated
for handling the most pressing work; in this way many subsequent
emergencies can be avoided and a more accurate assessment
can be made of the time likely to be required for the remaining
routine treatment.
During the later part of the year periodic visits have been
made by the Orthodontist to certain branch surgeries for consultation
purposes, and later it is hoped to extend this "routine"
to all clinics. As a result of this liaison bolder treatment
planning will be possible with a consequent saving of time on
non-productive measures.
In the more advanced field investigations have continued in
the technique of dealing with fractured incisor teeth; considerable
praise is due to a member of the staff for very laudable
efforts in connection with this specialised work.
Items of Treatment
The ensuing Table gives particulars of the principal items of treatment compared with those obtained last year:-
1955 | 1954 | |
---|---|---|
Attendances | 23,666 | 24,833 |
Treated | 9,918 | 11,194 |
Re-treated | 5,200 | 5,312 |
Fillings-Permanent | 8,879 | 8,667 |
Temporary | 1,513 | 1,740 |
No. of Teeth Filled: | ||
Permanent | 8,460 | 8,346 |
Temporary | 1,464 | 1,702 |
Extractions-Permanent | 2,384 | 2,153 |
Temporary | 9,103 | 10,713 |
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