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Two main lines of treatment which I fear I have stressed often
already are (a) the education and interest of the parents and
children as to hygienic facts presented by School Medical Officers,
and (b) the constant, untiring and kindly help and supervision
given by School Nurses, both at school inspections and in the
Homes themselves. It is necessary to bring out these points which
are apt perhaps to be forgotten by those not actually engaged in
the work.
There is not the least doubt that this type of disease is a disappearing
quantity, a large percentage of the attendances beingaccounted
for by the repeated appearance of one or two children
who may be almost described as haunting the clinic. The faith
with which these arrive time after time to have their discomfort
relieved is as encouraging as one's inability to keep them permanently
well is disappointing.
It is in this type of case especially that the sunlight clinic has
proved of real value by (a) promoting the general sense of wellbeing
in the child (b) increasing its resistance to infective disease,
(c) raising the general tone by improving the appetite, eliminating
constipation and enabling the child to put on weight. Much too
much general publicity has been given to the treatment by artificial
light as a "cure all," but in skilled hands these effects have been
sufficiently constant to give this treatment a very definite place
amongst our methods against eye disease.
The Myope Class was started last year to provide special sight
saving educational methods for 20 of the worst cases of myopia.
At its inception several children were brought home from residential
schools where they had been for some time, and started
in the class. This necessary economic measure may make it
rather difficult in the near future to accommodate cases of serious
shortsight which arise in the Borough. The class has naturally
suffered from the loss of the very intelligent teacher who started it.
With the long waiting list of eye cases which exists, it is difficult to
see how it will be possible for the Ophthalmic Surgeon to give time
for the personal inspection of the work of this class, but each child
attending it is seen in the ophthalmic clinic every three months
and progress carefully watched.