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be revealed that during the war years 618 H.E. Bombs, 33 Paramines,
35 Flying Bombs and 35 Rockets fell in the Borough, in connection
with which there were 530 civilian deaths and 1,453 patients treated
at First Aid Posts.
The Education Act, 1944 became operative on 1st April, 1945, and
Ilford now holds the status of an "Excepted District" under Essex
County Council, which is the Local Education Authority. The School
Medical Service, while operating locally as hitherto; is under the
administrative aegis of the County Council. The cessation of hostilities
and the return of many children from reception areas has resulted in
increased clinic attendances, especially of those requiring attention for
dental, visual and tonsil defects. This increase, together with the
continued shortage of hospital accommodation, staff and supply difficulties,
has in many instances caused unavoidable delay in securing
treatment. As pointed out on former occasions, there is a pressing
local need for the establishment of a Child Guidance Clinic. Increased
provision of day and residential school accommodation for educationally
sub-normal pupils and institutional facilities for ineducable children
is similarly required.
Since the cessation of hostilities efforts have been made to remove
some of the curtailments necessarily imposed on the Maternity and
Child Welfare Services during the War.
Additional Ante-Natal Post-Natal and Infant Welfare Olinic
sessions have been arranged, although at times shortage of accommodation,
Medical Officers and Health Visitors has restricted expansion.
In this connection I gratefully acknowledge the very considerable
assistance rendered by several of the local medical practitioners who
have kindly undertaken sessional duties at Infant Welfare Centres. The
shortage of Health Visitors is causing increasing concern as, owing to
the national shortage, it is difficult to fill vacancies, let alone increase
the establishment, which contemplated action has the approval of the
Ministry of Health.
This shortage of personnel is similarly causing anxiety in connection
with the Midwifery Services. The Maternity Home staff is depleted
to the extent of seven Midwives as compared with the pre-war figures.
Great strain has been thrown on the Maternity Home and Domiciliary
Midwives as a result of the steady and rapidly progressive increase in
the number of births since the latter months of 1945. Their devoted
service merits the highest praise. At the time of writing the
Maternity Home is, of necessity, having to accept monthly 25 per
cent, more cases than normal and the Domiciliary Midwives are
attending 52 per cent more home confinements. The demand for
institutional accommodation for Maternity Cases has been exceedingly
heavy.
The Maternity Home accommodation has been severely taxed, and
as a temporary measure it has been necessary to reduce the lying-in
period to 10—12 days whenever possible. Negotiations are now in
progress to establish a Post-Natal Hostel to relieve pressure on the
existing provision of Maternity Beds. Owing to the closure of many
of the Emergency Maternity Homes in Reception Areas, it has been
impossible to evacuate the desired number of expectant mothers for
whom institutional confinement has been rendered necessary owing to
lack of facilities for home confinement. It must be appreciated that
enemy action resulted in the total loss of 1,257 houses in the Borough,
the very serious damage to 9,410, and varying degrees of less serious
damage to 29,974 more. This, coupled with no significant diminution
in population and a now rising birth rate, has produced the present
difficulties of making arrangements for confinements.
Despite continual efforts it has not been possible to meet the considerable
demand for the services of Home or Domestic Helps.
The Future of the Health Services of the Borough will be largely
dependent on the provisions of the National Health Service Act—which