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with the putative father, a single man of 30. He appeared very ashamed of the association
and said he would like to be responsible for the upbringing of the child. He asked if a
temporary foster-home could be arranged. He had a good job and would take full financial
responsibility. This was done, and since then the paternal grandmother - having been
acquainted with the circumstances - has offered a home to the little boy.
CHILD WELFARE
Infant Welfare Sessions. The needs of the area have been met as before, by a total
of 17 sessions per week held at the 7 Municipal Centres and at the South West Ham Child
Welfare Centre. In the Silvertown area the Child Welfare Session is combined with the
ante-natal, and in all clinics Immunisation and vaccination are now carried out as part
of the regular clinic service. Sixteen children from neighbouring areas attended West Ham
clinics, and 23 children, and 7 expectant mothers resident in West Ham are known to have
attended clinics in other areas.
Toddlers' Clinics. In addition to the 17 sessions mentioned above, an average
of 4 special "toddlers' clinics" were held weekly. Two thousand, seven hundred and twentychildren
attended (in response to the 7,262 invitations to come for examination on their
seoond, third or fourth birthday). This means that if account is taken of the children in
the nursery schools,nursery classes and day nurseries, approximately 42% of all preschoolchildren
received a thorough medical examination. There were 2,648 children whose
general condition was regarded as satisfactory, and 73 in whom it was recorded as unsatisfactory.
In the same group of children there were 2,522 whose cleanliness of body and
clothing was recorded as good, 187 in whom it was found to be not entirely satisfactory,
and 12 in whom it was poor. Eight children were found to be verminous.
"Defects" or deviations from normality found in the same group of children are
shown below. The table includes conditions observed by the doctor or described by the
mother and recorded at the time of the examination. The classification of "defect" in
these pre-school children is in line with that prescribed by the Ministry of Education
for schoolchildren. No differentiation is made between major and minor defeats, but
no defect is recorded unless it is considered necessary to advise treatment or to keep
the child under observation.
Defect No. of children in whom found
Teeth 427
Skin 112
Eyes (a) Vision 6
(b) Squint 77
(c) Other 17
Ears (a) Hearing 9
(b) Otitis media (R 1
(L 1
(c ) Other 3
Nose or Throat 50
Speech 8l
Cervical Glands 16
Heart and Circulation 26
Lungs 28
45