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35
Personal Health Services
During the year 197 geriatric patients had passed through the Unit, and 30 have had permanent
admission. There is a marked increase in geriatric patients, and young chronic sick who require a
great amount of care and rehabilitation by the District Nurse over long periods.
Attachments with general practitioners are working well. General practitioners, nurses and most
of all, patients, are happy, and there is a hope for further developments in this field when more staff
are available.
During the year 3,510 patients were nursed and 2,387 of these were over 65 years of age. In
addition 4,303 were treated by the District Nurses in the general practitioner's surgeries, of these
550 were over 65 years of age, and 906 five years old and under.
Most of the District Nurses take part in the training of the Students from all the local hospitals.
They also give talks on Home Nursing to members of the W.R.V.S. and British Red Cross Society
and school pupils.
All District Nurses use a fair amount of disposable equipment, and to facilitate their work hoists
are in use in the appropriate cases.

General Practitioner Attachment
The formal attachment of two health visitors and a home nurse to a group practice continued
with limited success.
It is vital to such a scheme that all the personalities involved shall fit together, that there shall
be a full appreciation by each member of the potential skills of the others, that there shall be mutual
confidence professionally and free access to records. It is also of great benefit if regular general discussions
can take place between all members of the team together, in addition to consultation between
individuals about specific subjects.
No other formal schemes have been introduced, but liaison between nursing and medical personnel
in the Borough has continued. In many instances it would seem that a "liaison attachment" gives at
present belter results than a formal attachment.
OBSERVATION REGISTER
In the early days of its existence the aim of the child health service was to improve the condition
and survival rate of infants. Although this aim still remains, the emphasis has changed, and it is no
longer necessary to concentrate upon nutrition and physical development in the same way. Education
of parents about optimum nutrition and handling of their children is still carried on by health visitors,
but the Borough's doctors are more concerned with watching the children's general development
with the object of finding, and if possible treating any defect as early as possible. To this end all
children who attend the Clinic should be seen by the doctor at their first visit, at least once more
during their first year of life, and thereafter on or near their birthdays until they enter school.
Unfortunately, the state of medical man-power is such that this ideal cannot be carried out
completely. As I have explained in previous reports, there are certain "environmental" conditions
(including the physical condition of the mother during pregnancy) which it is thought may predispose
a child to develop a handicap and where these exist the child's name is placed on the observation
register for special attention to be paid to its developmental progress.