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14
NOTIFICATION OF BIRTHS ACT.
This Act came into force on February 1st, 1909. During
the eleven months 792 cases were notified out of a total of
about 850. The midwives notified 354, medical men notified
380, and the remainder were by relatives. Only a small
minority of the medical men have shown any opposition to
the Act, and these, though declining to notify, have instructed
the friends to do so.
I visited 48 mothers who had been attended by midwives,
and a few others notified by friends in very poor streets. I
found the conditions on the whole satisfactory. Only five of
the mothers were not nursing their babies and three others
could not give enough milk, so that artificial feeding had to
be used as a supplement. The mothers in all cases welcomed
my visit. Cards of advice were sent to all mothers except
those in the Workhouse, who received advice from the Poor
Law Officers. In two cases objection was raised to the
sending of the cards, but it was explained that no distinction
of persons was made, and no further trouble is expected.
Fourteen still births were notified.
At one visit it was found that two older children were
desquamating from Scarlet Fever. No further cases occurred.
Two mothers died of Puerperal Septicœmia. One
mother suffered from mild Enteric Fever during convalesence
from child birth.