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reception of maternity cases. This is a building used as a private
nursing-home situated just outside the borders of Harrow and of
the county, which has accommodation for about forty patients and
the necessary staff. The objections to the erection by the Council
of its own maternity home had been dictated by the belief that it
was advisable that maternity homes should be run in conjunction
with a general hospital. For this reason the proposal of the County
Council with regard to the Bushey Heath clinic was that it should
be run as an annexe to the Redhill Hospital, situated some three
to four miles away! On receipt of this information the Council
made representations to the Ministry asking that consent to the
application of the County Council to loan sanction should be withheld
on the grounds that the District Council was a proper authority
to acquire Bushey Heath clinic as a maternity hospital for their
own cases. The County Council was also approached with a view
to the District Council taking over the contract for the purchase of
the property. A deputation received by Mr. Robert Bernays, M.P.,
the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Health, was, however,
informed that the Ministry looked to the County Council, the
authority responsible for the provision of hospital accommodation,
as the authority responsible for the provision of maternity hospital
accommodation.
The Council had hitherto accepted responsibility for finding
maternity accommodation for cases recommended at their antenatal
clinics for admission to hospital. In view of the definite
refusal of the Ministry of permission for them to proceed with the
provision of their own maternity hospital consideration was given
to the question of the future policy with regard to accommodating
such cases. The position had been that, because of the difficulty
in obtaining admission of patients referred to the Redhill Hospital
from the clinics that patients recommended from the ordinary antenatal
clinics, whether on medical, social or domestic grounds, were
found accommodation at various of the London hospitals, the Council
accepting responsibility for the payment of the hospital charges.
In addition to this type of case, however, were those recommended
for admission by the consultants, either when seen at the consultant
ante-natal clinic or when they had been summoned in consultation
by the patients' medical practitioners. The decision adopted as to
future policy was:—1. That except cases recommended by any of
the consultant gynaecologists for admission to hospitals under the
consultant's care all maternity cases requiring institutional treatment
be referred to the Middlesex County Council. 2. That the
existing arrangements in regard to the consultant gynaecologist's
cases be continued. 3. That in cases where the medical officer of
health is of opinion that institutional treatment is necessary and
patients are refused hospitalization by the Middlesex County Council
the medical officer of health be authorised to arrange for their
admission to hospital as heretofore.