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SCHOOL HEALTH
Ear, nose and
throat clinic
A total of fifteen sessions, all at Southbury Clinic, were undertaken by a consultant holding a local
hospital appointment. The smaller number of sessions, compared with previous years, is explained by
the current practice of following up patients at hospital clinics.
Ophthalmic clinics
Two sessions every other week are held at Bowes Road Clinic, two sessions a week at Edmonton
Central Clinic, and three sessions a week at Southbury Clinic.
Orthoptic clinics
Pre-operative and post-operative treatment was provided by a full-time orthoptist at the three
ophthalmic clinics in the borough.
Orthopaedic clinic
Fewer cases were referred compared with previous years, and during part of the time no consultant
was available. For these reasons only eleven sessions were held during the year. Children requiring
physiotherapy attended hospital for this purpose.
Physiotherapy
Twice-weekly visits by a part-time physiotherapist were made to Hazelbury Open Air School and to
Durants and Waverley Schools for Educationally Sub-normal Children, where some of the children
received treatment either weekly or twice weekly.
Speech clinics
Due largely to staff shortages there are waiting lists for treatment both at clinics and special schools
and in one special school no treatment has been provided since the commencement of the autumn
term.
One child suffering from language retardation has been assessed and accepted for treatment at the
Wolfson Centre and Department of Developmental Paediatrics and will be attending four mornings a
week at the Centre's language class. Three of the four children attending this class during the year have
now been discharged and their speech therapy will be continued locally.
Three students from schools of speech therapy attended the Edmonton Central Clinic during the year
for practical training.
Child guidance
centre and clinic
The Child Guidance Centre and Clinic is situated at 8 Dryden Road, Bush Hill Park. There is staffing
provision for a part-time psychiatrist (eight sessions per week), four psychiatric social workers, four
educational psychologists and two psychotherapists. The Education Committee is responsible for
appointing staff other than the psychiatrist, who is appointed by the North East Metropolitan
Regional Hospital Board.
In conjunction with the centre and clinic there is the Selection Unit at Chase Side School for twenty
young children suffering severe emotional disorder. They are admitted on the recommendation of the
psychiatrist. The Unit provides a therapeutic environment in which further assessment of the problems
and abilities of these children is possible, as many of them are non-speaking and in other ways
inaccessible.
Elsewhere, remedial classes are provided for very small groups of children with specific learning difficulties,
who attend part-time; additionally a small full-time class for hyperactive infants is now held
under the supervision of the teacher in charge of the Selection Unit.
Nutrition
Advice on nutrition is available both individually and by group method, and is supplemented by the
use of diet sheets and weight charts. At the end of the year 37 overweight children were attending
clinics for advice. No underweight children were referred.
Enuresis
Twenty-two automatic enuresis alarm devices are available locally to assist in the treatment of
enuretic children. Fifty two children were issued with these alarm devices during the year.
Six months after success had been reported a check made in 22 cases revealed that eleven were still
dry; ten had relapsed; one had left the district.
Recuperative
holidays
One child was sent on a recuperative holiday of two weeks duration and three children had holidays
arranged by the British Epilepsy Association.See Tables (45), (46), (47), (48), (49), (50), (51) and (52).
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