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44
Home Safety — Lectures, talks and film shows are given
by the health visiting and other staff to local voluntary organisations,
youth clubs and in the schools. There has been
considerable expansion in the distribution of printed material
and this is now following the pattern of national campaigns,
the aim of which is to standardise our efforts with those of the
whole country. Other publicity projects are in course of preparation
which will deal with aspects of home safety needing
most attention. King George Hospital continues to be most
co-operative in advising of the number of patients under 5
years and the elderly who were treated for home accidents.
This information is of great help to us in that, by reason of
cause and numbers involved it enables us to plan our programmes
more meaningfully at a local level, and of course health
visitors do follow up these individual cases.
It has always been the custom to report in statistical terms
the amount of work carried out during the year. Though, of
course, there is a proven case for statistics in many areas
of work it is questionable whether they can be of great value
in some areas of health education unless they can relate, for
example, to the amount of health education carried out to the
total number of people at risk and then an evaluation of the
increase in knowledge, change in attitude and habits. However,
it should be placed on record that the work of staff and
especially the health visitors who, through individual or cooperative
efforts have contributed greatly to effective health
education during 1965.
Convalescent Treatment
Facilities exist to send away on convalescent holiday
persons recovering from debilitating illnesses. On the whole,
the purpose of the holiday is to enable the convalescent more
quickly to resume normal life and work. The service is particularly
valuable for people suffering from such conditions
as chronic bronchitis, although it has been found useful also
in the rehabilitation of nervous disorders.
Cases are referred by hospitals and by family doctors and
the convalescence may be spent at the seaside or in the
country, although there is a marked preference for seaside
convalescence. The service complements that provided on the
one hand by the Regional Hospital Board for patients who
need nursing care and that provided by the Welfare Section
of the Department which provides holidays for the elderly.