London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Redbridge 1968
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Redbridge]
This page requires JavaScript
68
School Dental
Service
Mr. E.V. Haigh, Principal School Dental Officer reports as follows:-
The Policy of the school dental service during 1968 was to increase
the number of school dental inspections and to treat all patients willing
to accept treatment from the Authority. The staffing remained almost
identical to last year with the full time equivalent of 5.17 dental
surgeons employed on the school dental service.
Dental inspections are very important, it is often only by these
inspections that parents can be informed that their children require
dental treatment. It is then the responsibility of the parent whether
treatment should be carried out by the general dental service or by the
school dental service. However many parents do not accept treatment
from either and it is only when the child complains of pain that treatment
is sought. During 1968 the dental surgeons inspected 67% of the school
population, this being 12% more than in 1967. Obviously our aim is 100%
each year but with staff shortage this is difficult. The amount of treatment
carried out in the clinics also increased, 8.5% more fillings.
The following table shows the clinics, number of surgeries, atten dances, sessions worked and the number of fillings.
| No. of Surgeries | Attendances | Treatment sessions | No. of fillings | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mayesbrook | 2 | 3,340 | 601 | 2,952 |
| Kenwood | 2 | 3,199 | 646 | 3,157 |
| Manford Way | 1 | 1,310 | 248½ | 1,451 |
| Valentine | 2 | 2,268 | 396 | 1,964 |
| 118 Hermon Hill | 1 | 1,295 | 233 | 1,092 |
| South Park | 1 | 196 | 57 | 174 |
| Totals | 9 | 11,608 | 2,181½ | 10,790 |
The South Park clinic was opened in 1968 and the dental suite is
well equipped. In October Mr. O'Connell commenced working 6 sessions
per week at this clinic. The number of patients attending is increasing.
It will be noted that with a staff of 5.17 full time equivalents it was
impossible to fully staff each clinic. in some areas such as Manford
Way and South Park the amount of sessions worked has proved to be
sufficient.
A dental auxiliary has continued to be employed at Kenwood Clinic
under the supervision of Mr. Willson, senior dental officer. Her work has
been of a good standard and her pleasant manner helps to cope with the