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103
An examination of all children attending the County Secondary
Grammar Schools in the area in December, 1948 revealed that out
of a total of 965 children seen 3 per cent, among the girls and 1 per
cent, among the boys claimed to be the patients of private
practitioners.
It would seem, therefore, that treatment of school children
in the Health Centres established by Local Authorities must
continue to be the main method whereby their dental needs will
be met, and it must, therefore, be a matter of urgent public
importance that steps be taken to build up these services and rescue
them from the moribund condition in which they now find themselves
due, in part, to the fact that no recruits are forthcoming,
while at the same time large numbers of public dental officers are
leaving the service for private practice.
Routine Inspection.
Dental inspection has been carried out in all but five schools
in the area during 1948, but a recommendation of the Ministry
of Education (Circular 1523, 1940) has been implemented and
only those children whose parents regularly accept the offer of
conservative dental treatment have been sent for and given complete
treatment.
Any children with pain have, of course, been treated ; and
any seeking advice have received it.
Anomalies in the figures, relating to the percentage of
acceptances in some cases, is due to the re-organisation of the
schools in August, 1948 between the time of inspection and the
giving of treatment in Norlington in July, and Newport in September.
For example, Norlington School shows an acceptance rate of
only 42.1 per cent., compared with 73.9 per cent, in the previous
year. Many of these children who had been inspected in July were
transferred to Newport, Connaught and other schools, and not
having returned acceptance forms, were re-inspected at the new
schools and included with the acceptors from those schools.
Routine Treatment.
Conservation by filling of as many temporary teeth as possible
up to about 8 or 9 years of age, followed, wherever possible, by
filling of all saveable permanent teeth, is the aim of the service
so that children leave school trained in the care of the teeth and
without the loss of permanent teeth.