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47
B.C.G. Vaccination
Vaccination against tuberculosis (B.C.G.) is offered to contacts of
known cases of tuberculosis, thirteen-year-old school children and
students of further education establishments. The numbers vaccinated
during the year 1968 were as follows:-
Contact Scheme 320
School Children and Students 1,619
The total number of persons on the tuberculosis register for the
district on 31st December, 1968 was 1,958 as compared with 2,023 on
31st December, 1967.
Advisory Clinics for the Elderly
The weekly advisory clinic for the elderly held at the Broadway
Clinic, Wealdstone, continued during the year, offering advice on personal
health problems, diet, accident prevention and social welfare. Any person
found on examination to have a condition requiring attention is referred
with a letter, to his own medical practitioner. Ten new cases were seen
during the year. The total number on the register was 50 and a total of
176 visits were made during the year.
A second clinic for the elderly was started in August at Tenby Road
Clinic. This Clinic appears to serve a very useful purpose and is well
attended. There is a luncheon club next door to the clinic and most of the
'patients' also attend this club. At the end of the year there were 34
persons on the clinic register.
Referrals to the clinics come from health visitors, chiropodists,
W.R.V.S. Clubs, and through other persons already attending the clinics.
Transport to the clinic is arranged by voluntary services and referrals from
the clinics were made to other services, including chiropody, home-help,
home nursing, meals-on-wheels and the cytology clinics.
Intermittent Haemodialysis in the Home
Recently there has been an increasing use of artificial kidney machines
in patients' homes in the treatment of chronic renal failure. Hospital
authorities provide and maintain the intermittent haemodialysis equipment
and provide the relevant medical services. They can also pay for the extra
cost of electricity and for the installation and rental of a telephone where
this is necessary. They have not, however, powers to make adaptations to
the home. Any adaptations required in the home preparatory to the
installation of the dialysis machine can be carried out by Local Health
Authoritities under section 28 of the National Health Service Act, 1946
subject to the approval of the Minister of Health.
In 1967 such a case presented itself and the Council sought and
obtained the Minister's approval to making arrangements under Section 28
for the adaptations necessary to install equipment for home renal dialysis.