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THE WORK OF THE MINOR AILMENT CLINICS. These clinics have always been well-used and
although attendances are falling a large number of children still come to them, referred
mainly by the head teachers,, The cases are seen by the school doctors on their clinic
sessions, and the bulk of the treatment is carried out by the school nurses. Although many
of the conditions seen may be regarded as trivial or superficial, their prompt treatment
saves a good deal of minor disability and in some eases prevents a simple lesion becoming a
major one. The chief defects treated fall under the following headings -
Minor skin troubles of various kinds, Including warts, ringworm, impetigo and scabies. The
incidence of the last three conditions has sharply declined in recent years and the few
cases of scabies seen are referred to a special clinic for treatments Other skin diseases
are dealt with from time to time.
Minor ailments of the eyes such as slight inflammatory conditions, sore eyelids, foreign
bodies and minor injuries. Some of the external diseases of the eye are, according to their
nature and severity, sent to the ophthalmic clinic for specialist attention.
Minor ailments of the ears such as small boils In the outer passage, wax, foreign bodies,
and the slighter degrees of earache and discharging ears are treated at the clinics. Cases
considered to require specialist attention are referred, by agreement with the child's
general practitioner, to the ear, nose and throat specialist.
Miscellaneous conditions consist of a very mixed collection of cases such as sores, whitlows,
boils, cuts, abrasions, chilblains and the like.
The above cases form the main mass of the work at minor ailment clinics.
The following figures give the number of cases of these kinds which were seen at the
clinics during the years:-
(a) Skin Diseases 1,187
(b) External Eye Diseases 338
(c) Minor Ear Defects 263
(d) Miscellaneous Defects 2,100
Total 3,888,
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