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Maternity and Child Welfare. 33
the Medical Officer of Health, as Medical Officer to the Maternity
and Child Welfare Centre, and by two Health Visitors, whose
duties also include other branches of public health work in the
District. There is thus secured the fullest co-ordination in all
spheres of preventive work. Assistance is also given at the Centre
by voluntary helpers.
The above infant welfare work is supervised by a local
Maternity and Child Welfare Committee, consisting of members of
the Barnes Urban District Council and additional co-opted members.
The importance of further reducing the rate of Infantile
Mortality, and of conserving the infant life of the population,
make it desirable that adequate provision should be made for the
welfare of both mother and child, even at the present time when
strict economy in expenditure is enjoined on Local Authorities.
Infant welfare work during 1922 has been very thoroughly
carried out, and has undoubtedly been effective in assisting to
secure the very favourable low death-rate amongst infants for the
year. The work carried out is summarised below:—
Home-Visiting.
The homes of all newly-born infants amongst the working
classes have been visited by the Health Visitors as soon as possible
after birth. They were revisited as often as the circumstances
of the particular cases indicated.
An endeavour was made to persuade as many mothers as
possible to attend at the Infant Welfare Centre, and the Health
Visitors kept in touch with those infants whose mothers, for one
reason or another, either could not or did not attend at the Centre.
Notifications in respect of 504 births were received during the
year (210 notifications from Doctors, 284 from Midwives, and 10
from parents or other persons).
Of the 504 infants whose births were notified, 345 were visited
in their homes by the Health Visitors, and 358 re-visits were made
to the homes of such of those infants as appeared to require
"following-up." It will be seen that 68 per cent. of the total births
notified were home visited; a very satisfactory proportion.