London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Brent 1965
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Brent]
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58
SCHOOL HYGIENE
Section 54 of the Education Act 1944 empowers the local education authority to cause examinations
of the person and clothing of pupils attending maintained schools. Inspections are carried out by the School
Nurses in school. The finding of slight infestation leads to an issue of an informal letter to the parents setting
out a method of treatment and offering a supply of cleansing material (emulsion). Steel combs are sold or
loaned where necessary. The appropriate formal notices are sent to parents of children previously found to
be verminous. Endeavours are made by the School Nurse to contact the parents personally to emphasise that
infestation may be a family complaint and not limited to the school child.
A cleansing department is provided at Stonebridge Clinic for the treatment of scabies and occasionally
deals with other verminous children.
Total number of Examinations 18,263
Total number of individuals found to be infested
for the first time during the year 256
Number of individual pupils in respect of whom
cleansing notices were issued under Section
57/2 Education Act 1944 76
Number of individual pupils in respect of
whom cleansing orders were issued Nil
WORK OF HEALTH VISITOR AND THE SCHOOL NURSE
The major part of the work of the Health Visitor/School Nurse is concerned with routine school
medical inspections and surveys. During 1965, the routine vision testing of school entrants was introduced
and is carried out at the pre-medical inspections conducted by the Health Visitor/School Nurse. A close
liaison is maintained with the teaching staff and in many cases the nurse's knowledge of particular families
proved helpful when dealing with problems of teaching or attendance.
Considerable assistance is given to the programme of health education in some schools in the
Borough and it is hoped to extend the work in the near future.
PROTECTION OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AGAINST TUBERCULOSIS
B.C.G. vaccination is offered to school children between their thirteenth and fourteenth birthdays
and as the scheme operates under Section 28 of the National Health Service Act is not confined to children
attending maintained schools but is also available to those of appropriate age attending independent schools.
The method adopted consists of a simple skin test usually in one arm to find out if a child needs
protection. If the skin reacts to the test it usually means that the child has developed some immunity, but
all such cases are investigated at the mass X-ray unit or chest clinics. If the skin does not react to the test
the child is unprotected and B.C.G. vaccination is offered.
In addition all school entrants are tested and where a reaction is noted the child is referred to the
chest clinics.
The table below gives number of children tested and vaccinated.
| (i) | Number of children whose parents were approached | 3,109 |
| (ii) | Number of children from (i) whose parents consented | 2,669—86% |
| (iii) | Number of those in (ii) negative to Heaf Gun Tests | 1,975—74% |
| (iv) | Number of those in (iii) B.C.G. vaccinated | 1,966—99.5% |
| (v) | Percentage of vaccination to (i) above | 63% |
| (i) | Number skin tested | 2,164 |
| (ii) | Number positive | 192—8.9% |
| (iii) | Number negative | 1,916—88% |
CONVALESCENT TREATMENT
Section 28 of the National Health Service Act 1946 permits a local health authority to arrange recuperative
holidays for persons for whom a holiday is considered necessary after a recent illness. A charge
is normally made for this service but in the case of school children the Education Authority accepts responbility.
During the year holidays for 29 school children were arranged at convalescent homes situated by the
sea and in the country.