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28
Doctors' Fees.
The Council has also arranged to pay the fees of doctors when
called in by midwives during the period of confinement. The
cost is remitted by the Council in the case of persons in necessitous
circumstances, those able to afford it being expected to repay
the outlay.
Health Visitors.
The function of a Health Visitor the circular states, should
comprise the visiting and supervision of all children under school
age in the district needing this attention ; the visiting of expectant
mothers who have attended at an Ante-natal Centre, or for
whom visits are desirable; inquiry into still-births and the deaths
of young children; and attendance at the Centre to which women
and children, including those whom she has visited in their homes,
come for medical and hygienic advice. Where these duties are
fully performed it appears to the Board that a district with about
400 births a year will be as much as one Health Visitor can undertake,
unless the district is very compact, or is of such a class that
many infants do not need visiting.
In Ealing there are two visitors and their duties include,
not only those mentioned in the Circular, but the visiting of cases
of tuberculosis, the visiting of cases of infectious disease after
leaving the hospital, and the visiting of cases of measles, Ophthalmia
Neonatorum and Epidemic Diarrhoea. To these duties
has to be added the management of the Maternity and Child Welfare
Centre. Ail this work together means more than two Health
Visitors can properly cope with.
Qualifications of Health Visitors.
The circular discusses the qualifications necessary where
Health Visitors are employed by Local Authorities. It also states
that the salary of a whole time officer acting as Health Visitor
should as a rule not be less than £120 a year.
Unfortunately our two Health Visitors are not paid on this
scale. They are both efficient officers and I must point out that
unless the salary paid is on this scale recommended by the Local
Government Board, we cannot hope to retain their services. In