View report page

Notes:- £ Figures shown in brackets indicate the approximate percentage, of available
children within the age groups who attended the Clinics.
† Figures shown in brackets indicate the average number of attendances made byeach
child.
Consultant Clinics.
The number of pre-school children referred to the specialist clinics available on
local authority premises (through the School Health Service) during 1954 were as follows
Ophthalmic 170
Ear, Nose and Throat 11
Paediatric 42
Child Guidance 4
Speech Therapy 10
With certain agreed exceptions, there is consultation between the clinic medical
officers and the family doctor, before a child is referred to a specialist clinic or
hospital. A copy of the report is sent to the family doctor.
19 children were referred to the Audiology Unit of the Royal National Throat Nose
and Ear Hospital, Gray's InneRoad, W.C.I. Of these 4 were found to be deaf, 2 partially
deaf, and 1 very slightly deaf. Of the remainder 4 were found to be retarded and 3
required speech training.
Of recent years, the possibility and the importance of detecting deafness in very
young children, has been increasingly appreciated, and the staff of the Audiology Unit
have developed special methods for testing babies and pre-school children. The provision
of a hearing aid and teaching his mother to train him to listen to her voice, may enable
a baby to hear speech at an age when he should normally be learning to talk. In this way
he will learn much quicker and will talk much better than if his deafness were not detected
until the "critical age" for speech had passed.
Physiotherapy.