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SECTION VI.—MATERNITY AND CHILD WELFARE.
The Council's Maternity and Child Welfare scheme is comprehensive in its
arrangements for the care and comfort of expectant and nursing mothers and for
children under 5 years of age. Its various branches are reported on in detail below,
but the following service, transferred from the London County Council under the
Transfer of Powers (London) Order, 1933, is reported on for the first time—Infant
Life Protection.
Staff.—Three whole-time medical officers are in medical charge of the clinics.
One of these devotes her whole time to Maternity and Child Welfare, and the other
two, part-time. One part-time medical officer takes charge of the Toddlers' examination
clinic, and two consultants have been appointed—one for the Artificial
Sunlight Clinic and one for consultation in connection with cases of Puerperal sepsis
and difficult obstetric conditions occurring at home. The dental staff—two dentists
and an anæsthetist—are part-time and are appointed by the School Treatment
Committee subject to the approval of the Council. The health visiting staff now
consists of eleven whole-time health visitors : two of these are part-time sanitary
inspectors, two are part-time Infant Life Protection visitors and one is the Artificial
Sunlight Clinic nurse.
Miss K. Latham, who entered the service of the Council on the 7th May, 1917,
retired on the 25th September, 1933, on superannuation. Miss A. Carey, who was
appointed to the vacancy so created, commenced duties on the 2nd June, 1933.
Miss W. Adams, who was appointed consequent upon the transfer of Infant Life
Protection duties from the London County Council to the Borough Councils, commenced
duty on the 2nd October, 1933.
Notification of Births Acts, 1907-15.—Every birth occurring in the Borough
requires to be notified to the Medical Officer of Health within thirty-six hours of
birth. As a matter of fact, only a very small percentage of births are so notified.
As soon as a notification is received pamphlets dealing with the care and comfort
of mothers and infants are sent by post to every mother. Subsequently, between
the tenth and fourteenth day, a visit is paid to the home by the health visitor who
decides on her first visit the necessity for subsequent visits. It may be stated,
however, that, broadly, the general basis of visiting is as follows:—three visits
during the first year and one visit in each subsequent year up to the age of five years,
or until the child goes to school.