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97
has been instrumental in frustrating the Government's declared
intention. Unless something is done at once to remove this
anomaly, the harm which will be done to the dental welfare of
expectant and nursing mothers and young children will have
widespread and far-reaching effects on their future health."
The following is the report of the Senior Dental Surgeon,
whose record of work done under trying circumstances has much
to commend it.
Report by the Authority's Senior Dental Officer
(A. E. Hall, L.D.S.)
The year 1949 has, like its predecessor, proved a disastrous
one from the dental staff point of view. In April one of the parttime
dental officers (at Leyton Green Health Centre) who had the
previous year reduced his sessions of attendance from four to two,
found it necessary to resign from the service. This was followed
in December by the resignation of a part-time dental officer who
had attended for four sessions per week at Park House Centre.
Over the whole year there was available an average staffing
equivalent to 1 5/11ths dental officers for the inspection and treatment
of approximately 12,500 school children in the area. In
addition, the same dental officers devoted an average of 2.3 sessions
per week to the Maternity and Child Welfare dental service.
When this is considered against the background of what is
considered adequate staffing for the area (six full-time dental
officers for the school children alone), it is obvious that nothing
like satisfactory service from the preventive and conservative
aspects has been possible.
Routine inspection has been carried out in only six of the
schools of the area ; and treatment for the children of these six
schools, plus one other school which was inspected in December,
1948. In addition, treatment for 2,411 accident and toothache
cases, which presented themselves without appointments, was
finished. The acceptance rate for the area was 70.08 per cent.,
which could be improved upon if there was sufficient staff to deal
with them.
The disappointing feature of this staff shortage is the delay in
detecting and preventing tooth troubles. The school dental clinic
is therefore assuming what one might describe as the function of
the dental out-patient department of a hospital—the relief of
toothache by extraction of hopelessly decayed teeth. That was