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The miscellaneous conditions include such cases as myositis ossificans, severe
congenital scoliosis, Hand-Schuller Christian disease, achondroplasia, post-vaccinal
encephalitis, ectopiae vesicae, arthrogryphosis, cerebellar tumours, congenital absence
of bones, amputations, post-operative rupture of liver and other defects. The Ministry of
Education favour the retention of handicapped pupils in ordinary schools whenever possible
and this is followed in practice.
During the past twenty years or so there have been very great changes in the incidence
of some of the diseases which cripple children. The number of children with serious
orthopaedic defects, especially those with tuberculosis of bones and joints, continues to
decline: the latter condition stood high in the list of causes; now it is well down and it
is hoped, will ultimately disappear. Rheumatic heart disease affects fewer children than it
did even a few years ago, and there are now in the special school more children disabled by
congenital heart defects than by rheumatism. There is every promise that poliomyelitis will
be prevented by vaccination. Then the remaining cases in the special school will be mostly
congenital defects - cerebral palsy, defects of the heart, fragilitas ossium, and
haemophilia. At the moment we have no cases of haemophilia, although a short time ago we had
as many as four. The incidence of physically handicapped pupils in the day special school is
in the region of 2 per 1,000 registered pupils.
ELIZABETH FRY SPASTIC UNIT
This Unit, attached to the Elizabeth Fry Special School was opened in June, 1954.
The Unit is under the control of the head teacher of the parent school and is a specially
designed single-storey building. A full account of the Unit appeared in the report for 1954.
The procedure for the admission and the attendance of pupils was also described at the same
time. In addition to the children in the nursery class of the Unit a large number of pupils
from the parent school attended for treatment in the large appropriately equipped physiotherapy
treatment room and also in the speech section. The progress of the children has been very
satisfactory. The Unit continues to arouse much interest, not only locally, but over a wide
area and many visitors, both individual and in groups, visit it in order to observe its working.
By the end of the year 13 children under the age of seven years were in the Unit. Of these
13 cases 7 were extra-district. In addition 4 cases attended the Unit on an out-patient basis,
1 under two years of age. Of these 4 two were extra-district. Of the 13 children in the
Unit all were receiving physiotherapy and 8 speech therapy.
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