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made remarkable progress, due in some measure to the unremitting
efforts of the day nursery staff in carrying out the prescribed
treatment. These children absorb a larger proportion of time
than the normal child. For this reason it will only be possible
and perhaps desirable to admit a very small percentage of such
children while the ratio of staff to children remains at its
present level.
The educational value of the day nursery to the child and
mother of all types should not be under-estimated. The opportunities
for learning and teaching by example are inexhaustible.
Two student nursery nurses entered for the examination of
the National Nursery Nurses Examination Board and were successful
in obtaining the Board's Certificate. One nursery nurse attended
a special course in child care which qualified her to be appointed
a warden at Plevna Day Nursery.
B. O. A. C. stewardesses and British Red Cross cadets were given
opportunities for observation and practical experience in the day
nurseries during the year. Residential student nurses were also
accepted for similar experience.
Outbreak of Dysentery at a Day Nursery
On the 29th July, 1957 the Matron reported several of the
younger children in one room as having diarrhoea. These children
were immediately excluded and the mothers advised to consult their
family doctors. Specimens were taken from the remainder of the
children. During the next few days 14 children were excluded, 13
as cases of diarrhoea and one as a contact of these cases. Nine
were proved to have Sonne type dysentery and one other child to
have a bacillus coli infection. Pathogenic organisms were not
recovered in three cases.
At the start of the outbreak it was decided that no child
should be admitted to the nursery without previous medical approval
A thorough cleansing of the nursery, and especially of the toilets
and washrooms, was undertaken and the toilets were cleansed after
use and several times daily as a routine Faeces specimens from
the nursery and kitchen staff were all negative.
The first child was re admitted to the nursery on the 19th
August and the last child to become negative returned on the 14th
October. Several cases proved very resistant to treatment,
largely because of poor hygienic facilities at home and three
children were admitted to hospital and treated successfully there.