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 by each child.
Consultant Clinics
The number of pre-school children referred from child welfare clinics to the
specialist clinics available on local authority premises (through the School Health
Service) was as follows, and shows only minor changes from 1958:-
Eye Clinic 129
E.N.T. Clinic 9
Audiology Unit 7
Paediatric Clinic 31
In addition, 19 children were referred to consultants in hospital out-patients.
With certain agreed exceptions, there is consultation between the clinic medical
officers and the family doctor, before a child is referred. A copy of the report is
sent to the family doctor.
Speech Therapy. Seven pre-school children were referred to the speech therapist.
At this age, when speech development has not been fully achieved, formal therapy is
rarely indicated, but referral gives good opportunity for careful observation of the
child's general development and of parental attitudes, and affords the child some relief
of tension, through play.
Audiology Clinic. Ten sessions were held. Thirty-nine children made 52
attendances (7 of whom were examined on two occasions and 3 on more than two occasions).
Of 29 new cases, 4 were found to be deaf, 3 partially deaf, and 18 had normal hearing.
The remaining 4 were still under observation at the end of the year.
Development of Audiology Scheme
The first venture which the County Borough of West Ham made into the field of
audiology and audiometry was when they appointed a full-time audiometrician in 1950.
As might be expected, at that time her work was in the field of routine gramophone
audiometry among school children. She worked in West Ham from 17th April, 1950, until
28th October, 1952.
58