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suspecting the presence of infestation. The downward trend
in head infestation has recently, but we hope only
temporarily, been halted. It is not yet however necessary to
re-introduce regular inspections. During the year school
nurses carried out 25,758 examinations and found lice or
their eggs in the hair of 236 individual pupils. Today there
is no excuse for such infestation and the infested pupils are
usual members of a hard core of families on whom neither
persuasion nor threats seem to have any effect. In most
cases the parents deal with the matter as soon as their
attention is drawn to it, but 9 formal notices requiring the
parent to cleanse the child had to be issued, and in 2 cases
where the parent had failed to respond to the formal notice
a cleansing order was issued for the pupil to be dealt with
by the school nurses.
Foot Inspections
School Nurses make regular foot inspections to discover
the presence of plantar warts and othr contagious skin
conditions of the feet. During the year 3,256 foot
inspections were carried out and 156 new cases of plantar
warts and 3 cases of re-infection were found.
It has previously been the policy of this Borough that,
in order to prevent the spread of plantar warts, any child
with plantar warts was excluded from the public swimming
baths until the warts had completely disappeared. Recent
research has indicated that once adequate treatment has
been started, there is no danger of the spread of infection
in the swimming pool. It was therefore decided, after
consultation with the General Baths Manager, that children
with plantar warts should be allowed to use the swimming
baths provided they could produce a medical certificate
stating that adequate treatment had been commenced. A
close watch will be kept on the future prevalence of
plantar warts in the Borough.
Minor Ailment Clinics
These are staffed by nurses and may be held at clinic
premises each morning, if required, to treat slight injuries,
skin infections and minor defects of eye or ear.
School Consultation Clinics
These are staffed by a medical officer and regular sessions
are held at the various clinic premises. Parents are free to
take their children for advice on any condition and pupils
may be referred by Head Teachers, school nurses and
others. These sessions also provide facilities for the
follow-up of conditions found in periodic and special
inspections. Where active treatment is required, pupils are
usually referred to their own doctors or specialist clinics
and most of the work done by the medical officer is
advisory, educational or supporting.
Ophthalmic Clinics
The vision of all school children is tested at the time of
their periodic medical inspection. At the intermediate
inspection, colour vision is also tested. Children may also
be referred to the School Consultation Clinic by parents,
head teacher or others, if they have any reason to suspect
defective vision. When an eye disease, squint or defect of
sight is found, the child may be referred to our Ophthalmic
Clinic to be seen by an Ophthalmic surgeon seconded from
the Regional Hospital Board. A total of 1865 children were
seen at these clinics during the year and spectacles were
prescribed for 590 pupils.
The examination of the vision of spastic and other
children with severe physical handicaps requires special
care and an ophthalmic surgeon visits Martindale School
for the physically handicapped approximately once a
month during term time. Some of these pupils also need
special training to make the best use of their vision and the
services of an orthoptist are also available.
Second pairs of glasses are provided for those children
whose vision is considered by the ophthalmic surgeon
likely to suffer damage if they were without glasses for
any period.
Orthopaedic Clinics
These clinics are staffed jointly by the Regional Hospital
Board who provide the orthopaedic surgeons and the Local
Authority who employ the physiotherapists. The clinic
held by Mr. Kingsmill Moore at Hounslow Health Centre
was discontinued early in the year. Mr. I. Archibald from
West Middlesex Hospital continues to attend monthly at
Brentford Health Centre. Physiotherapy clinics continue
to be held twice weekly at Hounslow Health Centre and
once a week at Brentford Health Centre.
128 children were seen by the orthopaedic surgeons
during the year and 116 children required treatment by the
physiotherapist at the Council Clinic.
Speech Therapy
The staff shortages experienced in 1971 continued into
1972 when another therapist left to get married. Despite
this shortage continuity was maintained by cutting down
sessions in all areas. The Diagnostic and Developmental
class at Busch Corner was kept staffed by a different speech
therapist each day, and the children responded well to
this.
Students from three of the London Speech Therapy
Training Schools continue to come to Hounslow's Clinics.
The scope of the facilities for handicapped children in the
Borough means more requests to take students than in most
areas. It is largely through these contacts with Training
Schools that applications for posts in Hounslow were
received, and full establishment was reached in October.
The number of children referred for assessment of speech
and language has risen steadily, now reaching some 18 new
cases per month, apart from the Special Schools and Units
and Day Nurseries.
Since all cases have been referred to Bath Road for
initial assessment by two therapists a greater consistency
has been maintained in assessment procedures, although
the numbers have risen to a point where there is a long
waiting list, which is unlikely to be reached until there is
an increased establishment. It is hoped that the increase
will be made in 1973. Care has been taken after assessment
in selecting cases for speech therapy. Children with
immature speech are placed under supervision and the
parents advised how best to help their child, and contact is
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