View report page

18
(d) Dental Treatment.—Mr. L. W. Elmer, Senior Dental
Surgeon, submits the following- report:—
I am happy to report that during 1952 there was a definite improvement
in the staffing position. During the year a dental surgeon
previously employed in a part-time capacity was appointed as a fulltime
officer and in the closing weeks of the year a further full-time
officer was engaged. This occurred too late to make any great
difference to the work undertaken during the year under review,
but I have high hopes that in the future a greater proportion of
the school population may be inspected and treated regularly, with
increased conservative work and, I trust, fewer extractions.
This conservatives work is waiting to be done and can only be
done if more time can be devoted to it—and the less conservative
work that is done the more extractions will be needed. It will
thus be seen that a great effort will be needed to break a vicious
circle.
Although 200 less Half days have been devoted to treatment
this year 800 more children have been inspected under routine age
groups. This is in spite of the fact that over 2,000 more "specials"
have presented themselves for treatment.
Administrations of general anaesthetics have increased by
1,000.
Four hundred more children have been treated in about the
same number of attendances as last year.
Fillings in permanent teeth have increased by about 600, but
total extractions are increased by over 1,000. Orthodontic treatment,
dressings, etc., are a little down, but conservative treatment
for deciduous teeth has increased by 1,000.
The above would appear to be a "mixed bag" of results, but
until it becomes possible to inspect all children regularly we cannot
expect the proportion of conservative to extraction work to improve
appreciably. The results would appear to be satisfactory as representing
an interim period.
Dental Hygiene.—Miss Watts commenced duty as Dental
Hygienist in Walthamstow in December 1951, and it was
arranged for her to attend on two days per week.
Initially much of her work was the scaling and polishing of
teeth of school children, but it soon became obvious that the type
of mouth requiring this sort of treatment was, fortunately, very
rare.
It became clear that much more useful work of this kind was
needed in the mouths of expectant and nursing mothers. Even
here, the supply was far from inexhaustible.