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44
The creation of a Centre, with its various ramifications, would
involve a considerable outlay, but true economy consists in judicious
expenditure, and the question should not be "what will it cost ?"
but "what will it return ?" . Can life and health be estimated in
terms of pounds, shillings and pence ?
The Lady Sanitary Inspectors, two in number, are also the Health
Visitors for the administration of the Notification of Births Act.
Under its provisions the birth of any child alive or still-born after
the 28th week of pregnancy should be notified to the Medical Officer
of Health within 36 hours of its occurrence. All notified cases are
registered, and such attention as is considered to be desirable is
afforded by the visitors.
The Medical Officer to the Local Government Board in his
Report for 1913 states that in those areas that have adopted the
Notification of Births Act there is, on an average, one Lady Inspector
to every 880 notified births. In Tottenham during 1914, 3,896 births
were notified, so that it is not to be expected that the amount of
"following up" of cases can be as systematically conducted as elsewhere,
where a larger staff is employed. The Lady Inspectors have
diversified duties to perform, including investigation of complaints;
the supervision of Outworkers and the premises where work is done
by females, namely factories, workshops and the homes. They also
visit certain notified cases of infectious diseases, and attend at the
School for Mothers on Thursday afternoons and at the Town Hall
on Monday afternoons for the weighing of the babies. They are
actively associated with the voluntary workers who arrange for the
dinners to mothers and prospective mothers. I feel constrained to
accord unstinted praise to them for their untiring zeal for and wholehearted
devotion to their work, and in no less degree do I commend
the Lady Doctors and voluntary workers who have given of their
time and in some considerable measure of their substance for the
mothers and children of St. Ann's and the surrounding neighbourhood.