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5
To the Chairman and Members of the
Walthamstow Committee for Education.
I beg to present in the following pages a report on the work of
the School Health Service in the Excepted District of Walthamstow
during 1953. The following matters seem to call for comment:—
There have been fewer changes in the senior staff, one only
in the medical staff, none amongst the dental surgeons, and a net
gain of one in the combined health visiting/school nursing staff.
Pressure on accommodation still grows since the number of
children on the school registers at the end of the year shows an
increase of 22.5% on those at the end of 1947. This increase affects
the School Health Service in at least two ways. Firstly, there is a
greater pressure on the inadequate sanitary accommodation of some
of the older schools, increasing the risk when cases of bacillary
dysentery occur. Secondly, the conditions under which medical
inspections are carried out become more difficult.
It is gratifying, therefore, to record the improvement resulting
from the rebuilding of two blocks of sanitary accommodation affect
ing five departments and the remodelling of cloakrooms in two
other departments.
Routine medical inspections and re-inspections increased owing
to the more static staff and as a result more defects were found and
treated or watched.
Cleanliness again improved to a new low record of 2.16% in
the number of children found to be unclean to average attendance
over the whole year. Although 387 children were found to be
infested this leaves no room for complacency especially as these
children mainly come from a "hard core " of dirty families.
Following from the appointment of an additional dental team
at the end of 1952, dental inspection and treatment was increased.
After a period of some anxiety the threat to transfer specialist
clinics into the hospitals receded and no change occurred.
On the retirement of Mr. Whitchurch Howell, F.R.C.S., Con
sultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, the Committee placed on record their
thanks and appreciation for the fine service which he had rendered
to the crippled children of Walthamstow over a period of thirty
years.