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when a doctor is treating an ailing infant, he is not treating
one patient but two, and very often the patient whom he is not
called in to see—that is the anxious mother—is the one who wants
treating most. It is an astounding thing how a fussy, anxious
mother will in some way impose her state of mind on the infant,
whereas the contented mother who feels that she is helping towards
her infant's recovery, is a very potent assistant to the medical
attendant. Some people will jeer at the idea of psychotherapy in
these cases; it may be quite good medical treatment, for instance,
to give a child a dose of medicine once a day, but it is rank bad
therapeutics from the point of view of the anxious mother. The
medicine can be given more often, or some perfectly harmless procedure
can be adopted which keeps the mother's mind at rest and
gives her something to do, whereby she feels that she is assisting in
the child's recovery. It means an enormous amount to the sick
infant not to be fussed over by a constantly anxious mother wanting
to do something.
Another thing that impresses me more and more with the
influx of new children from other districts, is the number of breastfed
children with definite signs of rickets. By this I do not mean
that we do not get them amongst our own children. We do. Mothers
who stay away from the clinic for long periods, bring the children
up again because they are not satisfied with their progress, and
again and again one is faced by definitely ricketty manifestations.
Ante-Natal Clinic.
This Clinic is held at 92, Bath Road, Hounslow. Owing to
the increasing attendances it was necessary in July, 1930, to put
on an additional session, which is held on the third Wednesday in
each month. The attendances are still increasing, and it is expected
that another session will be required in the near future.
Dr. J. W. Bell relinquished the Ante-Natal Clinic work at the
end of December, 1930, but still acts as Consultant for obstetric
emergencies when required by a Medical Practitioner in a difficult