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
Wimbledon 1937
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Wimbledon]
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The following table shows the number of Wimbledon Children treated at the Speech Clinic:—
| Defect. | Number attending at commencement of year. | Number admitted during the year. | Number discharged during the year. | Number attending at end of year. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stammerers | 14 | 8 | 10 | 12 |
| Defective Speech | 4 | 8 | 6 | 6 |
| Total | 18 | 16 | 16 | 18 |
In 1936, at the request of the Surrey Education Committee,
arrangements were made for some of the Surrey children living
near the Wimbledon boundary, who were suffering from speech
defects, to attend the Clinic at Pelham Road.
The following table shows the number of Surrey children dealt with:—
| Defect. | Number attending at commencement of year. | Number admitted during the year. | Number discharged during the year. | Number attending at end of year. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stammerers | ... | 4 | 1 | 3 |
| Defective Speech | 3 | 3 | ... | |
| Total | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
Stammerers attend two classes each week. The average
number attending this class was six.
Children with defective speech attend twice a week and
are dealt with by the teacher individually.
Miss Sinclair, who is in charge of this Clinic, reports that
the work has been very satisfactory during 1937 and that all
the children attending have shown improvement. At the end
of each term reports were received from the Head Teachers
of the schools which these children attended. These reports
were very helpful. In all cases some improvement had been
noted and in many the improvement had been very marked.
Relaxation, together with rhythmic movements with the
help of a gramophone, were important features of the treatment
carried out. It is essential that children should attend
these speech classes regularly. Difficulty was experienced with