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60
Consultant Ante-natal Clinic.
The Council's consultant obstetrician attends the clinic three weeks
out of four.
In 1946 the consultant paid 36 visits to the clinic, seeing 370 patients,
who made altogether 488 attendances. General practitioners referred
71 patients. There were 4 gynaecological and 3 post-natal cases.
Treatment.
Welfare authorities are empowered to arrange for expectant and
nursing mothers to receive treatment of a limited class of conditions.
The arrangements made for them to receive this are the same as for
children under five years of age. In May, 1945, the Committee decided
that the following treatment services should be provided free of charge
to expectant and nursing mothers : dental treatment, excluding the
supply of dentures; eye treatment; sunlight treatment and home
nursing.
Mothers receiving dental treatment totalled 563 and 109 were
supplied with dentures. The staff of the District Nursing Association
treated 59 nursing mothers. One mother was treated at the physiotherapeutic
Clinic at 76, Marlborough Hill.
ARRANGEMENTS FOR CONFINEMENT.
Domiciliary Confinements.
Number of Confinements: The number of births attended in
private houses in the district by midwives who gave notice of their
intention to practise was 1,095, in 778 cases the attendant being present as
a midwife, and in 317 as a maternity nurse. Of these 1,055 were attended
by local midwives, whose practice is limited to domiciliary work (749 as
midwives and 306 as maternity nurses) and 40 as midwives from adjoining
areas (29 as midwives and 11 as maternity nurses).
Number of Midwives : The number of midwives who, during the
year notified their intention to practise in the district, was 49. Of these,
12 removed, leaving in practice at the end of the year 37. Of the total
number 19 were engaged in local maternity homes, most of these restricting
their activities to these duties. Resident in the district were 24 who
carried on a domiciliary practice, while 6, though resident in adjoining
areas, attended cases in this district. At the end of the year there were
in practice 12 independent midwives carrying on a domiciliary service,
these between them attending 18 cases during the year, 13 as midwives
and 5 as maternity nurses.
Midwives' Notifications to Local Supervising Authority :
During the year the following numbers of notifications were received
from all midwives, including those engaged in local maternity homes :—
Sending for medical assistance 279
Stillbirth 16
Death of infant 12
Death of mother 1
Laying out the dead 3
Artificial feeding 13
Liable to be a source of infection 6