[Report 1920] / Medical Officer of Health, Salop / Shropshire County Council.

  • Shropshire Council
Date:
1920
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1920] / Medical Officer of Health, Salop / Shropshire County Council. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    28/62 (page 16)
    Medical Fees.—^Tlie fees of medical men called in by midwives under tiie rules of tlie Central Midwives Board are paid by tlie County Council, so that there is now no excuse for a midwife not calling in a doctor, and he is certain of getting his fee. The County Council in every case asks the patient to ])ay the fee or to show that she is not able to do so, and tlecides upoji furtlicr action for recovery if necessary. This ])rocedure should restdt in the medical practitioners in a large proportion of cases recovering directly from the patient where they are able to pay the fee. When the whole County is j)rovided with trained midwives, there will be no reason wliy eveiw woman, however poor, should not liave adequate midwifery and medical attendance at her confinement. Supply of Free d/i7A’.--Milk is supplied free in necessitous cases. Each case is enquired into and certified by tlie Medical Officer of the Centre, and one of the lady helpers, and wliere there is no centre b}^ the health visitor and a local responsible person. They are all scrutinised care¬ fully at the Central Office. There can be no doubt that this is real preventive work of great value. Institutional Tyeatment of expectant and niiysing mothers and their infants suffering from Venereal Diseases is carried out under the Venereal Disease Scheme at Cleveland House, Wolver¬ hampton. Hostels for unmarried Mothers and their Infants.—^The arrangements with Chaddeslode, Shrewsbury and the Hereford Diocesan Home have fallen through. More recently (1921) an arrangement has been made with the Mrs. Legge Memorial Home, Wolverhampton. Prevention of Rickets.—Y\\& prevention and the provision of early treatment of rickets has been strongly emphasised as one of the most important parts of the work of the health visitors. Rickets is a disease which is not without danger to life whilst it lasts, and leaves permaiient injury often of a serious character. The mere straightening of a limb is a very different thing from the prevention of the disease. Although the cause of rickets has not been demonstrated with certainty, there is reason to believe that fooil, and particularly the absence of one food factor, the fat soluble A vitamine is one of the principal causes, (i-reat attention is ■l)aid to improving the conditions of food, fresh air, exercises and cleanliness in all children, but in addition, for the special prevention of rickets, the following memorandum with regard to crude cod liver oil has been issued to health visitors :— Rickets and Cod Liver Oil. It seems very probable that one of the greatest means of preventioji of rickets is the administration of cuide cod liver oil. h'or preventive purposes this should be given to the mother before confinement and during the nursing period in all cases where she has previously had a rickety child. The infant, too, should be given small quantities when three or four months old and onwards. By this procedure it is antici]xited that a \’ery considerable number of cases of rickets will be completely preventet.l. Immeiliately rickets is detected in a child it should be ])ut on cod liver oil, ami il it is being breast-fed the mother should also be given cod liver oil. The doses need not be large. ])erhaps a dessert-spoonful twice a day to the mother, and a tea-spoonfid or le^s twice a day to an infant or young child. No other kind than Allen and llanbury's crude Cod Ei\’er Oil should be used lor the ]) resent. An endeavour is being made to get crmle cod liver oil stocked not only at the Clinics, hut also with every district nurse throughout the county.