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SCHOOL HEALTH
Medical inspection
section 48
Education Act 1944
The purpose of the medical inspection required by Section 48 of the
Education Act 1944 is to ensure the fitness of school children to derive
the maximum benefit from the education provided.
The procedure adopted for the medical inspection, at appropriate intervals,
of pupils attending maintained schools has followed the same pattern as
in previous years. Full medical inspection is provided at school entry, at
ten years of age and during the last statutory year at school, with a vision
test only at eight years of age. The form of appointment for the medical
inspection invites a parent to be present, thus providing an opportunity for
parent and medical officer to discuss the child's health and allied problems.
An estimate of the child's physical condition is made at the time of the
inspection and of the 9,225 examined in 1970 all were classified as satisfactory.
Following the final medical inspection before leaving school the
Careers Officer is notified if, for health reasons, a pupil should not undertake
certain types of employment.
Medical inspection is not provided at the ten independent schools in the
borough but these schools are included in the B.C.G. vaccination scheme.
Medical officers are available to visit, mainly in a consultative capacity,
the two technical colleges in the borough. Southgate Technical College
was visited thirteen times and 300 first year students consulted the medical
officer.
Certain parts of the Family Law Reform Act 1969 came into force on the
1st January, 1970, and one particular Section amends the age of consent
and provides that a minor who has attained the age of sixteen years may
consent, as if he were of full age, to surgical, medical or dental treatment.
This was brought to the attention of Southgate Technical College for the
amendment, as necessary, of the questionnaire used in connection with
the medical officers' visits to the college.
The Mass Radiography Unit visited both technical colleges in the Autumn
and 247 students from Enfield College of Technology and 364 from Southgate
Technical College had chest X-rays.
Colour vision
Persons with defective colour vision are unable to follow certain occupa-
tions. So that pupils may be made aware of any such defect reasonably
early in their school lives, the intermediate periodic medical inspection
—at approximately ten years of age—includes a colour vision test by the
Ishihara method. Those found by this method to have a defect are further
tested by the less selective Giles Archer Lantern Test.
One hundred and thirty-one boys and five girls were found by the Ishihara
test to have a degree of colour blindness. Of the ninety-nine boys and
six girls tested by the Giles Archer Lantern, nine boys were found to be
normal, twenty-six boys and five girls were found to be safe, and sixty-four
boys and one girl unsafe in relation to certain standards for employment.
Hearing
The employment of one full-time and one part-time audiometer operator
enables children to be sweep tested three times during their school life
and more frequently on request or where there is known or suspected
hearing loss. In addition, some pre-school children are tested either by
audiometry or free field testing. One of the audiometer operators attends
the ear, nose and throat clinics and tests children as requested by the
consultants.
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