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(b) 28 nurses employed by the Plaistow Maternity Hospital.
The latter nurses undertake visiting of the majority of
women attended at confinement by midwives from that institution.
In addition, a certain amount of supervision of special cases
attending voluntary clinics is carried out by the superintendent
nurses of these clinics.
Routine visits by municipal health visitors.
Children. Up to two years of age the young child is visited
quarterly; thereafter half-yearly until he goes to school. Premature
infants and special or sick babies are visited each month or more
frequently until their condition is satisfactory.
Expectant mothers. Visits are paid to supplement the
supervision and advice given at the clinics. In addition the health
visitors visit women who fail to keep their appointments for examination,
and many visits are paid in connection with the arrangements
for home helps, admission to hospital for confinement, and
for similar reasons.
Infant Life Protection. Foster children are visited at least
every two months by the municipal health visitors of their respective
districts.
Special investigation visits. All notified cases of puerperal
pyrexia, ophthalmia neonatorum, and pemphigus neonatorum, are
visited and reported upon at regular intervals until the patient's
condition is satisfactory.
Infant deaths, stillbirths, and maternal deaths are
investigated by the health visitors.
Co-operation with school medical service. Immediately
a child attends school (including the two nursery schools provided
by the Council) a summary card is completed for transfer to the
school medical section of the department. This card contains the
history of the child from birth to school age with reference to home
conditions, method of feeding in infancy and early childhood,
development of the child physically and mentally, and any illnesses
from which he may have suffered. These cards are available for
use by the assistant school medical officers when these children
first attend for medical examination.
Visits of health visitors. Some details of the work of the
health visitors are set out in Table XX., and particulars of special
visits are given below.
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