London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
East Ham 1946
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for East Ham]
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COMPARATIVE STATISTICS.
The following table indicates briefly the work of the School Health Service during the year 1946 and shows the comparative statistics for previous years.
| 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Routine and Special inspections at School: | |||||
| *Maintained Secondary Schools | - | — | — | 969 | 1,404 |
| *Maintained Primary Schools | — | — | — | 1,741 | 4,034 |
| †Secondary Schools | 442 | 815 | 46 | 125 | — |
| †Elementary Schools | 3,803 | 4,453 | 2,844 | 640 | — |
| Re-inspections at School | 3,400 | 2,795 | 1,368 | 1,795 | 2,834 |
| Inspections and Re-inspections at Clinics | 22,532 | 22,135 | 19,509 | 14,628 | 11,571 |
| General cleanliness visits to schools | 175 | 276 | 227 | 223 | 256 |
| Examinations for cleanliness | 15,769 | 28,427 | 22,573 | 25,448 | 30,077 |
| Nurses' visits to homes | 3,781 | 4,124 | 2,955 | 1,859 | 1,404 |
| *Since 1-4-45. | †Up to 31-3-45. | ||||
SCHOOL MEDICAL INSPECTIONS.
Under the Education Act, 1944, (Section 48), all pupils must be
submitted for medical inspection in accordance with arrangements
provided by the authority and generally that such inspection shall
take place on the premises of the school attended by the pupil concerned
and that, as far as practicable, parents shall be given the
opportunity to be present.
A similar procedure is laid down for dental inspection by
experienced dental officers of the authority.
The medical inspection is carried out at prescribed times in a
convenient room set aside for this specific purpose in each school,
prior notice having been given to both parent and pupil. The
examination which is more in the nature of a comprehensive consultation,
is directed towards obtaining a true assessment of the
mental and physical attributes of the individual together with
observations on personality and his relationship to his teachers, the
school, his parents, and home life. At the same time, careful note
is made of his speech, his posture, locomotion, visual acuity, bodily
cleanliness, efforts at personal hygiene, and an attempt is made to
engage his friendly co-operation in the full understanding of the meaning
of positive health. An account of all that is observed is indexed
on standard record cards, but any defects or faults noted, although