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practical Midwifery; one has specialised knowledge of
Massage and Actino-Therapy; another was for several
years a District Nurse for general and Tuberculosis
work.
There are seven Health Visitors working in the
Department and the scope of their work is indicated by
the figures which follow:—
First visits to infants under one month 2,182
Re-visits to infants under one month 758
First visits to infants between 1 and 2 months 58
Re-visits do. do. 10,340
First visits to infants between 1 and 2 years 22
Re-visits do. do. 4,646
First visits to infants over 3 years of age 49
Re-visits do. do. 7,177
Visits to cases of Ophthalmia Neonatorum 18
„ Measles 643
„ Diarrhoea 19
„ Pneumonia 21
„ Puerperal Fever 12
„ Puerperal Pyrexia 19
Ante-Natal visits 864
Other visits 94
Each Health Visitor has one-seventh of the Borough
as her area, and the work is directed from the Town Hall.
The whole Department is controlled by the provisions of
the Maternity and Child Welfare Act, 1918, and a large
proportion of the work of the Health Visitors is
directly dependent on the Notification of Births Act,
1907, as through notifications made under the provisions
of that Act information is received of births occurring
within the Borough. The Health Visitor calls as soon as
the period of attendance by the doctor or midwife
has ended, i.e. eleven days after the birth of the child.
This is done in all cases, whether the child has been born
in an institution or at home.
The Health Visitors give advice on the general
management of the children: and where there is an infant,
the importance of breast feeding is stressed. Anything
which can affect the well-being of the home is the concern
of the Health Visitor, and mothers are encouraged by
them to place their children under regular medical
supervision.