in 1955 totalled 33,084 of which only 1,820 were domiciliary
There were 305 stillbirths, a rate of 9.21 per 1,000.
cases.
70. Ante-natal supervision is gradually becoming more appreciated and attendances are rising, although approximately 30% of deliveries are still of mothers who have received no ante-natal attention. In the year there were 19,961 attendances by 7,192 women, an average of 2.77 visits by each person. This compared well with the attendance rate of 1.81 per case recorded in the previous year. As regards private midwives a somewhat higher percentage of pregnancies are attended ante-natally, as is to be expected with a higher income group, and approximately 20% of births occur without prior supervision.
71. Supervision of all registered maternity homes and midwives is maintained by a system of regular visits by the Supervisor of Midwives. In 1955, 186 private maternity homes were on the register and 831 visits were made to their premises. The records and equipment of midwives are inspected annually.
72. Instruction in the technique of B.C.G. vaccination, now offered routinely for the new born, was given to 322 midwives by the B.C.G. team of the tuberculosis service at the Tsan Yuk Hospital and the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals. 71 private midwives also attended a post-graduate course in ante-natal care given at the Harcourt Maternal and Child Health Centre.
73. Maternal and Child Health Clinics provide care for children under 2 years of age. Regular supervision and advice is given and particularly directed to infant welfare. Most attendances are concerned with those under 1 year old. The whole emphasis is on the prevention rather than the treatment of established disease. 227,662 attendances by 16,089 children were recorded in the year, an average of 14.15 visits by each child.
74. Selected cases of families of the lowest income groups (less than $100 per month) received supplementary meals at Maternal and Child Health Centres in groups of about 50 at a time. 35,366 meals of this type were served. Skimmed milk powder and soap supplied by U.N.1.C.E.F. continued to be distributed at centres to cases selected by Health Visitors.
22
75. Health Education is a most useful aspect of the work of these centres and clinics. Group talks, discussions, and demonstrations were organized and well attended. Home visita offer the best chance of health propaganda, which can be directed to actual conditions present in the living circumstances of an individual family. 22,487 such visits were made to homes in 1955.
76. The Maternal and Child Health team from the World Health Organization which had given valuable assistance during the previous 2 years on certain aspects of the Medical Depart- ment's Maternal and Child Health programme, completed its project in March 1956.
School Health Service.
77. The past year has seen this service unable to absorb all those new entrants to schools who wished to join and it has been necessary, owing to lack of staff and school clinic premises, to limit the numbers served. Since September, 1955, no new entrants have been accepted except from Government schools. The number of pupils participating in December 1955 was approximately 42,000 from 463 schools. The service provides medical examination on entry and at ages 7, 10, 12, 15 and 18 years. There are 4 school clinics which treat minor ailments and deal with cases referred to them from school health doctors, teachers, and parents. A new clinic at the Queen Elizabeth School was opened in November and is capable of expansion.
78. The following tables give the figures for the main activities of the service in 1955:
TABLE 7
Medical Inspections of Pupils, 1955
New Kotrants.... Periodical Inspections
Re-inspections,
Total
ו ו - * - ו ו -------
23
16,012 9,221
42.302
67,535
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