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any person who attends on any patient in any nursing home, or
(c) to a woman who, before the first day of January, 1937, has
been certified by the authorities of a hospital or other institution,
to which the Minister has by order applied this proviso, to have
been trained in obstetric nursing and who has given notice in writing
to the authority of the area that she has been so certified.
There are twelve women known to practise in the area as
maternity nurses who are neither state registered nurses nor certified
midwives. Five of these have certificates from approved training
institutions while the remaining seven will be required to discontinue
their work when the Order comes into force. While this may be
unfortunate for the women concerned, it must be borne in mind
that they have no qualification and that the Midwives Act, 1936,
has as one of its main objects the improvement of the standard of
midwifery and the elimination of the untrained person. The
representations made by the Council resulted in the Minister of
Health making an Order applying Section 6 to the Borough from
the 1st June, 1938.
Attainment of the Objects of the Act.
The principal object of the Act was to secure the provision
of a domiciliary service of salaried midwives as an important step
in the improvement of the maternity services and in the campaign
for reducing maternal mortality, and at the same time to raise the
whole status of the midwifery profession.
The latter object was achieved, in so far as Ealing was concerned,
by the appointment of the best qualified and experienced
of the local midwives and by placing them in the same grade as
the health visitors and school nurses. In addition they receive
suitable allowances for travelling and for the provision of accommodation
for interviewing patients; they are provided with
uniform, equipment and the telephone and they receive adequate
off-duty periods and holidays.
The improvement of the maternity service at which the Act
aims will be brought about (1) by the greater measure of supervision
which can be exercised over the midwives, (2) by the adoption of
improved methods on the part of staff, (3) by the better conditions
under which they will work, and (4) by the greater measure of