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31
There is great improvement in health education in schools (See School
Report P ) but because of the time gap between school leaving and adult
practice much of the content is forgotten. Regular reinforcement of relevant
topics and redirection of emphasis is necessary at intervals.
The Health Education staff are exploring supplementary opportunities
for educating young parents. A six weeks' pilot course was run for mothers
with children attending the Jane Carrick Nursery Playgroup. These
'playgroup - linked' talks covered heredity, growth and development, communication
and play (demonstrating methods with the children) home safety,
sex education and other emotional problems. The role of each member of the
family unit, the stimulation and reaction of one person to another and the
chain reaction which can result from one small 'incident' formed the nucleus
of the final discussion.
Contact is being made with the Area Organiser of the Pre-School Playgroups
Association, which now has a large following, offering similar
courses to mothers with children attending the playgroups.
(c) General Practice
The attachment of health visitors, district nurses and midwives to
general practice provides a new dimension and stimulus to health education.
General practitioners are inevitably involved in health education during consultations
with individual patients since their diseases cannot be treated in
isolation from their social environment. One health visitor has an attractive
display in the waiting room consisting of leaflets dealing with specific
topics which are helpful in the personal health situation. "Health education,
as an integral part of preventive medicine, shares with it a concern with
populations and groups of people rather than individuals". (Baric). Three
health visitors have also successfully established parentcraft courses and a
weight control advisory service in practices.
In-Service Training
Help was given with a wide variety of in-service training sessions all of
which either directly or indirectly had implications for the health and educacation
of the public.
Among them were:—
1. Home Helps (2 groups) "Supporting Services for the Family", "Cervical
Cytology" and "Accident Prevention".
2. Home Help Organisers (London Boroughs' Training Committee) "Teaching
and Training Methods*.
3. School Cooks and Kitchen Staff (Monthly Groups) "Food Hygiene"
4. Child Care Officers Film "John" and discussion on "Children in
Temporary Care".
5. Foster Parents "Talking to Children about Growing Up".