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SECTION 24: HEALTH VISITING.
Staffing - The Joint establishment of 40 health visitors and school nurses (apportioned as
22 to the Health Committee and l8 to the Education Committee) has never yet been filled.
All trained health visitors undertake duties in the School Health Service, as well as in
maternity and child welfare and more general public health work. There is still a small
number of school nurses who are not trained health visitors and are too near retirement to
take additional training. They work mainly in the School Health Service, but sometimes take
clinic duties at the Maternity and Child Welfare centres.
At the end of the year the health visiting and school nursing staff was as follows:
(a) Superintendent Nursing Officer and Deputy Superintendent Nursing Officer.
(b) 23 health visitors employed on Joint Health Visiting/School Nursing duties. 32
(c) 9 school nurses employed solely on. School Nursing duties.
(d) 1 health visitor employed by the South West Ham Health Society. Not included in the
(e) 3 health visitors (out of an establishment of 4) employed establishment of 40
on Tuberculosis work. health visitors/sohool
nurses.
Three student health visitors completed their training under the Council's scheme, and
were appointed to vacancies on the establishment. They are under contract to give the Council
two years' service. At the end of the year there were six students in training, but the department
is finding it increasingly difficult to recruit suitable students. This is in accordance
with the experience in other areas, but as there is a continuing drain on the service through
resignations, a review of the whole position is indicated. It is hoped that the publication of
the report of the working party on "The Field of Work, Training, and Recruitment of Health Visitors"
will afford a suitable opportunity for a review of the whole organisation and structure of the
health visiting service. It is greatly to the advantage of the work if health visitors of some
maturity and experience can be retained long enough to become thoroughly familiar with the families
in their districts, and with their colleagues in the other social services.
Eight health visitors resigned during the year. They had been in the department for:-
1 less than 1 year
3 for 2 years each
2 for 3 years each
2 for 5 years each
and the more senior ones in particular have done very valuable work in building up the service
during the post-war period, and in setting a high standard for their colleagues to follow. The
Health Visitor who had been with us for less than 1 year was released from her contract for urgent
domestic reasons, of the remaining seven who left during the year two had married and the others
wished to widen their experience or to work in areas which they preferred for personal reasons.
With one exception, all of our present 23 health visitors have been trained under the Council's
scheme.
15 have been with us less than 2 years and are still under contract.
3 " " " " 2 years
3 " " " " 3 years
1 has been with us 4 years
1 " " " " 5 years
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