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At Uxbridge Clinic a large backlog of cases had accumulated by September 1971. Apart
from the usual number of children seen in the clinics, there were a number of children from special
schools who needed urgent treatment because no speech therapy had been available in the area
for some months. Work began with groups of patients with similar difficulties seeing four or five
children during each session. By the end of December, 339 had been given appointments, the
average number of children being seen in one month being 120. Most of the patients had articulatory
defects (165) several of them having associated language difficulties. There were six patients
with predominantly language difficulties not including two from E.S.N, schools. One patient was
dysarthric, and two had speech difficulties associated with a cleft palate. There were four stammers.
The number of children receiving treatment at Northwood Clinic is 10 and the number under
observation nine; five are on the waiting list. The patients are referred by the medical officer at a
medical inspection, sometimes by the health visitor, occasionally by the family doctor.
The type of speech defects seen is mainly that of the dyslalic, varying from a mild degree,
i.e. omitting "s" sounds or substituting "t" for "k", etc., to a severe dyslalia where all sounds are
defective or omitted. It is essential for children who display this latter defect to begin treatment
at the earliest age, certainly before the child begins school, in order to help him to acquire normal
speech before he begins to read.
Conditions at clinics are not always very satisfactory for speech therapy, i.e. the ceiling of
the room may be very high or the acoustics poor and often there is constant noise of traffic outside
the windows. It is essential that a quiet room be set aside for this type of treatment since it requires
a great concentration on behalf of a child and a clear appreciation of the sounds to be reproduced.
This cannot be done in an atmosphere of noise.
The number receiving treatment at Ickenham Clinic is six and five are under observation;
three are on the waiting list.
In the first six months of 1971 there was no speech therapist at Minet Clinic, Hayes. From
the end of June until the end of December, 210 attendances were made. Until the end of December
1971 much time was still taken up in interviewing patients on the observation list, and by completing
initial interviews of the backlog of patients referred during the earlier part of the year.
Inevitably many children have to wait for some months before receiving treatment, and many
of the less severe cases were put on the review list after parents had been given the necessary
advice on handling their children's particular problems. With the commencement of more sessions
each week the situation has been greatly improved and by the end of December, 25 children were
receiving regular therapy and there were only two children on the waiting list. Patients treated for
defective articulation are seen individually. The stammerers and pre-school children with delayed
speech and language development have group therapy. During 1971, two school visits were made—
one to Minet Infant School and one to Minet Junior School. The help and co-operation given by
the heads and the teachers was much appreciated, especially in the case of teachers who have
helped children with exercises.
In November, two student health visitors came as observers to a speech therapy session.
The interest of health visitors is most welcome. Their early advice to mothers on encouraging and
stimulating language could in some cases avoid the necessity of children needing treatment at
a later date, and their unique advantage of meeting mothers and young children in their homes
gives them the opportunity to refer speech defective children to the doctor at an earlier stage
than might otherwise occur.
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