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17
NURSING HOMES
Any person who carries on a nursing home in this district needs to
be registered. The responsibility for registering and supervising the
homes rests with the Health Committee of the County Council.
During the year Hillside Nursing Home closed; and Heywood
re-opened, being registered for the reception of one maternity and four
other patients.
At the beginning of the year 17 homes were registered; these provided
193 beds, of which 22 were for maternity cases. At the end of the year
there were 17 registered homes which provided 194 beds, of which 20
were for maternity cases.
ESTABLISHMENTS FOR MASSAGE AND
SPECIAL TREATMENT
By Section 355 of the Middlesex County Council Act, 1944, no
person shall carry on in this district an establishment for massage or
special treatment without a licence from the Council authorising him to
do so. There is a saving clause for registered members of the Chartered
Society of Physiotherapy and for members of the medical profession.
At the end of the year there were in the district 27 premises licensed
as establishments for massage or special treatment. In addition, certificates
were lodged by registered members of the Chartered Society of
Physiotherapy in respect of six premises.
NURSING, MIDWIFERY, ETC., IN THE HOME
1. General Nursing
The District Nursing Service maintained by the Harrow District
Nursing Association was run from two homes, one at Bessborough Road,
the other at Uppingham Avenue. Because of the inability to recruit
sufficient staff who wanted to live in to warrant both homes being retained,
in 1951 the Bessborough Road home was closed. For the same reason
the Uppingham Avenue home was closed this last year. The Home
Nursing Service now then is provided by nurses, some whole-time and
some part-time, working from their own homes. As far as possible,
each whole-time nurse serves the district near her home. Medical
practitioners get into touch direct with the nurses who serve those parts of
the districts where the patients live.
2. Midwifery and Maternity Nursing
With the fall in the numbers of births which take place in the homes
of the mothers, a fall largely due to the wishes of mothers to be confined in
hospitals or other institutions, the 13 County Council midwives were
more than sufficient to meet the needs of the Area. During the year the
district lost one of its midwives to an adjoining area. The County Council
midwives during the year attended as midwives 494 home confinements
and 108 as maternity nurses.
3. Home Helps
The County Council, as local health authority, provides domestic
helps to households where such help is required because of illness or
B