[Report 1935] / Medical Officer of Health, Birkenhead County Borough.
- Birkenhead (England). County Borough Council.
- Date:
- 1935
Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Credit: [Report 1935] / Medical Officer of Health, Birkenhead County Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.
97/130 page 81
![HEALTH OF SCHOOL CHILDREN Staff.—The Medical Staff engaged in carrying out School Medic-a; Service duties at the end of the year consisted of Dr. Dea^-on, Dr. Williams, Dr. liitchie and Dr. Marsh; the last-named being engaged on part-time duty. Mr. P. Wilson Smith, l.d.s., Dental Surgeon, and ^liss E. M. Warlovv, l.d.s. and Mr. W. G. Walch, l.d.s., Assistant Dental Surgeons, have been responsible for dental inspection and treatment throughout the year. Co-ordination—All the Assistant School Medical Officers (with the exception of Dr. Marsh) are also Assistant Medical Officers of Health, and co-ordination between the school medical services and the other health services provided by the Corporation is tlius very close, so far as staff is concerned. The interest shown, and advice readily given, by the Director of Education in connection with all braiif-hes ci{ the work are of great value. School Hygiene.—The premises of all public elementary s<-hools are inspected annually by the Assistant School ^Medical Officers. Attention is directed particularly to the condition of the sanitary coriveniences, lavatories, cloakrooms and playgrounds; and to the adequacy of ventilation and lighting. Tlie Director of Education is furnished with copies of these reports (and of those made by the Sanitary Inspectors) so that any necessary action maj- be taken. School Camps.—Two school camps were* held during the summer at Derwen and Dyserth, one from 241h May to the 7th .lune, an<l the other from dOth August to the Idth Sej)tembcr. 920 children who had been selected as being suitable cases to attend were medically examined. After numerous i-e-examinations, ami treat- ment for various minor ailments in a number of children by the Health Nurses, 845 children were eventually ])assed as medii-ally tit, and attended the camps, 275 in May and 57() in August. Two Health Nurses stayed at both cam]'S for the purpose of giving first-aid or carrying out any necessary treatment for minor ailments. Open-air School.—No o])eu-air school has yet been made available for Birkenhead children, although some stei)s have been tak'en towards selecting a site. The need for provision of this kind has been enqihasised year by year in various reports; perhaps I may quote here from my first annual report to the Education Committee (that for the year 1920): — I should like to take this opportunity of urging the desirability of the establishment of an 0])en-air school for delicate Birkenhead children, hixperience has shown that open-air schools are of the greatest value in curing incipient constitutional diseases and in building up delicate and weakly children into healthy and disease-resisting members of the community. “Expenditure on institutions of this kind is, in the truest sense, an economy, viewing the case from a ]nirely financial standpoint. There can be no doubt that much of the disability and sickness of youth and adult life is preventible; and that many of the ])atients who find their way into our sanatoria and poor law hosj^itals, levy- ing heavy charges on the rates, would never have fallen from health](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b28927291_0099.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
