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The work of each Home Help is closely supervised by the
Health Visitor, who visits the patient's home several times during
the lying-in period in order to see that the Home Help is fulfilling'
her duties as required. A list of these duties is handed to the
Home Help when she is engaged for the case and approved of by
the Health Visitor. In order that the Health Visitor may get in
touch with the case at an early date after the confinement, the
Home Help is required to notify the Medical Officer of Health
not later than the day following the confinement that she has commenced
her duties.
A list of women known to the Health Visitors to be satisfactory
Home Helps is kept for reference and use at the Medical Officer
of Health's Department; but, in the majority of cases, the
patient selects her own Home Help from amongst her friends,
relatives of the applicant being excluded. The suggested Home
Help is visited at her home by the Health Visitor whose duty it is
to decide whether this women is suitable or not to be a Home
Help. Particulars are also received from the Public Assistance
Officer of the circumstances of both applicants and Home Helps
where these may be known to him or his staff.
During 1932 there were 1,420 applications for Home Helps,
of which number 1,166 were eligible; 39 were cancelled, making a
total number of 1,160 women sanctioned by the Council under this
Scheme.
Midwives.
The work of the midwives practising in the Borough is supervised
by the Senior Assistant Medical Officer for Maternity and
Child Welfare.
The total number who notified their intention to practise in
the Borough in 1932 was 107, all of whom are trained midwives.
At the end of 1932 it was found that there were only 57 midwives
actually practising in the Borough; the difference between these
two figures is accounted for by the fact that there are several
large training schools for midwives in the Borough whose pupils
may and frequently do continue to practise midwifery for a short
period only in connection with their training schools after receiving'
the Central Midwives' Board Certificate.
The Council does not employ or subsidise directly any midwives,
other than five who are employed in the Maternity Wards
of one of the Council's institutions.
Number of cases attended by Midwives in 1932 2704
Number of cases in which medical aid was summoned 550
Number of cases in which the Midwife acted as a Maternity
Nurse 239
12!