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38
HOME NURSING
Following an analysis of the use made by the local medical practitioners
of the home nursing service, discussions were held with the doctors with
a view to carrying out a pilot scheme of attachment of district nurses to
general medical practices. As a result of these discussions, a total of seven
doctors participated in the scheme and four district nurses were allocated to
them for an average of four hours a week. At the end of the year it was too
early to measure the success of the scheme but the indications are that it
will prove to be worthwhile.
The implementation of the scheme on a wider basis would depend to a great
extent on the availability of staff, but there seems to be no doubt that both the
general practitioners and district nurses welcome the scheme. The doctors are
finding that they have more time to devote to the practice of medicine, while
the nurses have found that their knowledge and experience has vastly widened.
The statistical summary below indicates briefly the amount of work
carried out by the district nurses during the year:-
Number of cases being nursed at end of 1968 807
Total number of patients nursed during year 2,666
(Of these 92 were aged under 5 years and 1,567 were
aged 65 years or over at their first visit in 1968)
Total number of visits during 1968 99,454
Number of home nurses 31
Bathing Service and Incontinent Laundry
A bathing service for elderly people is provided at the Millfields Road
Station, but this will be transferred in 1969 to improved accommodation at
Shoreditch Health Centre. Home bathing is also undertaken in cases where a
visit to the Centre is not possible.
The laundering of soiled linen will continue to be carried out at
Millfields Centre. In 1968 the number of articles laundered totalled 41,000.
CHIROPODY
Prior to 1959 the local authority chiropody service was limited to the level
that existed before 5th July 1948. In 1959, the Minister of Health approved the
extension of the service and the former Division 4 area of the London County
Council which covered the same area as the present Borough received approval to
holding up to 100 sessions per week at Council clinics. There were periodic subsequent
increases until by 31st March 1965 approval existed for 107 sessions per
week. Since then the situation has remained unchanged, not because there is not
the need for more sessions in some parts of the Borough but because there is
difficulty in maintaining even the existing approved sessions due to the shortage
of suitably qualified chiropodists. The service continued mainly to provide for
priority cases, e.g. expectant mothers, children and persons aged 65 or over.
In addition to the service run by the Council there is a service run by the
Hackney Association for the Welfare of Old People. Prior to 1965 the Hackney
Association for the Welfare of Old People provided a limited domiciliary service
and this has continued but it falls far short of the needs of the area.
A number of partially handicapped persons as well as some of the very
elderly are brought to the clinics by ambulance but it is not easy to dovetail
the visits to the clinics in such a way as not to overlap with the delivery
of "meals on wheels".
In 1967 the chief chiropodist initiated a modest service in the clinics
in the preparation of appliances which has continued to be a success.