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been few changes during the year. Miss I. Cox and Miss E.
Holly were appointed as school nurses in January, 1937, to fill the
vacancies caused by the retirement of Miss L. F. Manning and
the transfer of Mrs. C. B. Halls to the Knox Road and CrosbyRoad
Special Schools, consequent on the retirement of Miss E.
Eraser.
During the year eight members of the staff were absent,
through illness for a period of one month or over.
No temporary assistance was necessary except at the Fyfield
Open-air School, where Miss L. Shepherd was appointed to assist
on the nursing staff during the holiday period. Nurse Taylor, of
the school medical staff, was also drafted there temporarily in
the early part of the year, while the matron was away on sick
leave.
III. CO-ORDINATION OF THE HEALTH SERVICES.
"Co-ordination" as a name may be used so frequently as to
be virtually a shibboleth as a practice, if it is to be effective it
should be exercised as completely as possible. In West Ham it
may be said that co-operation between the various sections of the
health services is practised extensively, but that the co-ordination
of the school service with the health services generally, in so far
as the fusion of staff and clinic premises are concerned, has not
yet been effected.
With reference to the practice of co-operation, it may be
said that the School Medical Officer is also Medical Officer of
Health and Chief Tuberculosis Officer, and that in this way a united
control of the various clinical services is attained. It should however
be remembered that the co-ordination of the personnel ought
to apply to assistants as well as to the head of the department.
The true advantages of co-ordination can only be achieved if
those officers who have to examine and treat the school child are
able at times to engage practically in work which is somewhat
outside their own particular field.
There is no doubt that the complete pooling of the resources
of an Authority, so far as personnel and premises are concerned,
has long had considerable support in official circles. For example,
Sir George Newman wrote in 1928 "It would be inexpedient, and
indeed wasteful, for an Education Committee to establish a
properly equipped clinic for children of school age and a Health
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