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CARE OF MOTHERS AND YOUNG CHILDREN
Ante-Natal and Post-Natal Clinics
Number of women attended:
Ante-Natal Attendances Post-Natal Attendances
555 2,346 73 73
Sessions held (medical officer in attendance) 212.
Ante-natal relaxation and post-natal exercises are taught in all the clinics. 617
women made 3,093 attendances at these clinics during the year.
Incidence of Congenital Malformations
Since 1st January, 1964 the Ministry of Health (now the Department of Health
and Social Security) have required all congenital malformations in new-born babies to
be notified by Local Health Authorities to the Registrar General, so as to enable the
latter to complete statistical information from which to detect any national or regional
changes in the pattern of congenital malformations.
The number of babies born with defects during 1969 was 52.
Puerperal Pyrexia
In accordance with the Public Health (Infectious Diseases) Regulations, 1968,
this disease is no longer notifiable.
Family Planning
Medical Cases.
The arrangement whereby the Council pays for women referred by its own
medical officers on medical grounds continued in 1969 when 25 patients were referred.
It was not possible to deal with these cases at the Council's well-woman clinics but the
training of medical officers to undertake these duties is proceeding.
Domiciliary Cases
As a result of the National Health Service (Family Planning) Act, 1967, the
Council started a domiciliary service in June. The service, which is free of charge to
the patient, is run in conjunction with the Family Planning Association. Women who
are unwilling or unable to go to the family doctor or the family planning clinic are
visited in their homes by a doctor and a nurse from the Family Planning Association,
subject to the consent of the family doctor. Referrals are made by members of my staff.
Thus, families with problems may well be prevented from becoming "problem families".
Twenty cases were referred up to the end of the year.
Youth Counselling Service
Following the Council's decision to provide a Youth Counselling Service, a clinic
to help young people mainly between the ages of 16 and 24, living in the Borough, with
their personal and emotional problems was opened in June, under the direction of Dr.
Faith Spicer, assisted by a psychiatric social worker and an administrative assistant.
The clinic was held on one evening a week.
In the first seven months, 3 1 persons were referred of whom 24 attended. The
16/17 years age group was predominant. It is felt that some of the non-attenders were
vulnerable young people who, after a painful experience, saw referral as a punishment.
The majority of the individuals concerned were young women and, of these, most
were perfectly straightforward birth control cases. However, this initial request often
covered an emotional problem and some cases needed to be referred for further treatment.
Unfortunately, such action was not always possible as the psychiatric services
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