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(b) The Tuesday Club
The Tuesday Club originated from a suggestion from the Committee
of the Local Association for the Blind. It was felt that there was a need for
group meetings at which partially sighted and blind elderly housebound
people could participate in simple physical exercise. The aim was to encourage
more confidence in their movements and to offer some mental
stimulation.
After discussion with a variety of interested people and a Health
Education Officer, it was decided that a weekly physical exercise session
to music should be tried on Tuesday mornings - hence the name "Tuesday
Club".
The first meeting was held in June and 15 members were transported to
Bedford Hall by minibus driven by a volunteer. The ages ranged from 70 to
96 years. The group was delighted to meet and so willing to enter into the
spirit of the meeting that the Health Education Officer's slight anxiety
about the suitability of the activity was soon dispelled. Sessions have
been held weekly ever since. They began with simple exercises for neck,
hands, feet and ankles which were practised to music with the group
sitting down, and have now progressed from gentle to fairly strenuous exercises
involving the use of the whole body. The Health Education Officer
now knows the members well and has informal discussions with them about
many health problems. On their part the members of the group enjoy coming
out to the sessions and look forward to them as social occasions. They
have remarked that the exercises relieve muscle cramp, "pins and needles"
in the neck, make them feel fitter and brighter and that the music makes the
whole meeting enjoyable. The Health Education Officer on her part learnt a
great deal about guiding and handling the blind, the importance of making
one's speech clear and descriptive and received lessons in how the blind
are taught to count, handle money and read Braille. She was most grateful
throughout for the constant and vital support of the Chairman of the Local
Association for the Blind, Mr. Thornton, and his wife; Mr. H. Steward a
Committee member who initiated the scheme, and also his wife.
(c) "Don't Hoard Medicines" Campaign - 3rd to 24th March
Mrs. E.B.E. Hughes, M.P.S., P.H.C., Chairman of the Campaign Committee
(of 6 Pharmacists), worked with the co-operation of the Principal Health
Education Officer on a campaign to persuade the public to turn out their
old unwanted medicines and take them to their Chemist for destruction. The
following ia an extract from Mrs. Hughes' report on the campaign:-
"Drugs Brought In:— It was possible to examine each bottle as it was
emptied (at Mayday Hospital Pharmacy). Many unfinished antibiotic treatments
were returned. Different kinds of tablets were frequently found in one
bottle. Many drugs were extremely old (some pre-War) and in a terrible condition.
Some preparations had self diagnosis on the label e.g. "Bob's tummy