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101
Any nursing mother experiencing difficulty in preparing
the milk should send a Post Card to the Medical Officer of
Health at the Town Hall, Stratford, when a Health Visitor
will call and give all the information necessary.
Ophthalmia Neonatorum and Puerperal Infection.
On October 1st, 1926, new Regulations drawn up by the
Minister of Health came into force. The onus of notifying to
the Medical Officer of Health cases of Ophthalmia Neonatorum
now rests with the Medical Practitioner alone and not as
hitherto on the Midwife, while all rises of temperature above
100.4° in women after child birth are compulsorily notifiable
as Puerperal Pyrexia or Fever by the Medical attendant. On
receiving such a notification the Council is made responsible for
the provision of suitable hospital accommodation if desired or of
home nursing where this is considered more beneficial to the
patient, the facilities for Consultation with a specialist where a
second opinion is asked and the examination of bacteriological
specimens when necessary. Although arrangements have
been made for the nursing of such cases in the Plaistow Isolation
Hospital in practice we find that most of the cases are
sent to Whipps Cross Hospital by the Medical Practitioner,
while both Plaistow Maternity Charity and Queen Mary's
Hospital make their own arrangements.
Where home nursing has been required the Plaistow
Maternity Charity Nurses have attended their own cases, and
the District Nurses have undertaken those for whom the
doctor has applied for help to their organisations. It has not
been found necessary yet to provide a Municipal Nurse for
this purposes.