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At these routine inspections the number of children examined
was 2,280. Of these 612 were entrants, 505 belonged to the second
and 546 to the third age-group, while 617 were of ages outside these
three groups. The entrants are children starting school for the
first time, the second group eight years' old children, and the third
children of twelve years or over, who have not previously been
examined in this group.
In addition to these routine inspections, 1,078 special cases
were examined, and 2,368 children re-examined. The "specials"
are children who are referred to the School Medical Officers by the
School Nurses, Teachers, or School Attendance Officers or who are
brought for examination by parents or guardians. Many of these
special cases are seen at school at the time of the ordinary medical
inspections, but the majority are seen at the School Clinic at special
consultations on Tuesday or Saturday mornings. The children
re-examined are those who have been found at previous routine or
special examinations to be suffering from defects which require
either to receive treatment or to be kept under observation.
The total number of children on the registers of the elementary
schools on December 31st, 1935, was 5,652. The number examined
by the School Medical Officers during the year was 3,358.
5.—FINDINGS OF MEDICAL INSPECTION.
The details of the medical inspections, the defects found and
the treatment provided will be found in the statistical tables at the
end of this Keport. Table Ic shows the number of children found
at the routine medical inspections to require treatment. These
numbers are small and must be regarded as very satisfactory. Their
smallness is due in large part to the close co-operation which exists
between the schools and the school medical service, and to the
abundant use made of the School Clinic. Defects in children are
very frequently brought to our notice by the School Staffs and the
necessary treatment arranged for or provided weeks or perhaps
months before the routine medical inspections are due to take place
in particular schools, and in this way the number of defects actually
requiring treatment found at the routine inspections tends to be
very small.
Table iia gives details of the defects found both at the routine
and the special examinations, classified as either requiring treatment
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