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23
The day and night rota system for midwives continued during the
year and worked well to the mutual benefit of patients and the midwifery
staff.
The work of the midwives is co-ordinated by the Non-medical
Supervisor of Midwives, Miss R. C. Speaight, of 585 Honeypot Lane,
Stanmore—Telephone: Wordsworth 5564.
Maternity Services—Catchment Areas
During 1963, due to the shortage of maternity beds, many patients
in need of hospital confinement could not be booked into any hospital
and had to wait until they were in labour and be admitted to a hospital
under the Emergency Bed Service. This was a most unsatisfactory state
of affairs, and finally during the last few months of 1963, the Ministry
of Health asked the Regional Hospital Boards to define maternity catchment
areas in the Greater London Area, and a group of maternity beds
to serve them. The idea was that each district would be linked to a
particular maternity hospital or hospitals and it would be the hospital's
responsibility to provide all the necessary services for its particular
district. This would obviate the need for any patient to seek admission
through the Emergency Bed Service.
The new areas were defined and brought into use in May, 1964.
The Borough of Harrow is linked with the Boroughs of Brent and
Barnet in Area 3 catchment area, and on a district basis receives its
maternity hospital services from the Edgware General and Kingsbury
Maternity Hospitals.
New liaison committees were set up to co-ordinate administrative
and executive action.
The new scheme is working well but the only real answer to the
problem is the provision of more maternity beds generally, and more
specifically in relation to the Borough, the completion of the new hospital
at Northwick Park, which will provide 100 new maternity beds.
Section 24—Health Visiting.
During the year 1964, the Health Visiting establishment was once
again under strength, even though it was possible to recruit seven new
members of staff, including the two student Health Visitors who were
appointed in 1963 to attend the Sponsored Health Visitors Training
Course at Chiswick Polytechnic and who gained their certificates in July,
1964. This recruitment figure was offset by the resignations of seven
Health Visitors on the staff—two to start their own families, one for
further training and three moving away from the district. In addition
to the above appointments, it was possible to recruit another student who
started her certificate course at Chiswick in September and who it is
hoped will join the staff in July, 1965.