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63
SCHOOL DENTAL SERVICE
The year 1952 has seen no improvement in the staffing position,
and vacancies exist for 3 full time dental officers.
Efforts have been made to utilise the present staff to its
fullest capacity by instituting evening sessions for the treatment
of older school children. A scheme was put into operation on the
1st January, 1952, and has proved a great success. The dental
officers and dental attendants, undertake the work voluntarily,
but only full time employees of the Middlesex County Council are
permitted to take part. The number of evening sessions affords
the equivalent addition to the staff of one half time dental officer.
It has enabled a proportion of the older school children to obtain
full treatment provided they were prepared to attend a clinic
during an evening. A large percentage of the children seen and
referred for treatment at a number of senior schools availed
themselves of the opportunity of having their teeth put in a
sound condition.
The statistical return shows that 1,762 permanent teeth were
saved by inserting 2,048 fillings in the teeth of 659 senior pupils
at evening sessions. It is a matter of conjecture how many of
these teeth would have had to be extracted, if these children had
not the opportunity of this treatment.
The shortage of Orthodontic staff has inevitably led to long
waiting lists for treatment at the Orthodontic Clinic. The waiting
list at Cherington House Clinic, Hanwell, which serves the Ealing
area had to be closed during the year and it has not been possible
yet to re-open it. This has led to more work of an orthodontic
nature being carried out by the dental officers. The orthodontic
laboratory of the Royal Dental Hospital of London has continued
to supply all the removable appliances required by the orthodontist
at Cherington House Clinic. This service which has been in
operation some three years is greatly appreciated.
The X-ray section of the school dental service is operated by
a dental attendant who has been specially trained in this type of
work. This is the first full year in which all the radiographs
required by the dental officers and orthodontists for diagnostic
purposes have been supplied entirely by our own department.
A total of 1,245 separate dental skiagrams were taken, the majority
of which were for orthodontic purposes.
The system of restricted full dental treatment, which was
introduced into the Ealing area in 1950 has had to be continued
owing to the staffing position which has not improved during the
year. The present position is that children in the junior departments
of the schools are given routine inspection and the offer of
full treatment at approximately annual intervals during the normal