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required by the Education (Administrative Provisions)
Act 1907, the County Council have appointed two
medical inspectors to act under the supervision of the
County Medical Officer of Health, and the work of
medical inspection commenced when the schools reopened
after the Easter holidays, 1908.
The work required by the Board of Education
during the first year, is the inspection of (a) children
newly admitted to school life, and (b) children about to
leave school.
Before the date upon which the medical inspector
has arranged to visit a school, notice is sent to the
parents of the children who are due for examination,
i.e., who come under either of the above headings, in
order that they may avail themselves of the opportunity
of being present, and with very few exceptions they
have attended at the schools on the day of inspection.
In order that they shall be kept waiting for as short a
time as possible, the probable time of each child's
examination is notified so far as possible.
The medical inspection has been very favourably
received.
In the district of Harrow a total of 363 children
have been inspected during 1908, viz:—181 boys and
182 girls, and in all cases where the necessity arose,
advice to consult a doctor has been given to the parent,
or if the matter was more trivial in character, the parent
has been told what course to pursue.
In connection with the occurrence of infectious
disease amongst scholars, the County Medical Officer
communicated with the Medical Officer of Health of the
district, asking to be informed by him as to infectious
disease, whether notifiable or non-notifiable, occurring
amongst children attending the public elementary
schools, in order that he might be able to consult at
once with him in the matter, and to ensure that the
administrative procedure of both the local sanitary
authority and the local education authority should be
reciprocally helpful.
With the same object in view any information
obtained by the medical inspectors or the County Medical
Officer which would be of value to the local Medical
Officer of Health was at once communicated to him with
a view to obtaining his assistance.