The Dominion. MONDAY, MAY 23, 1914. THE HEALTH CAMPAIGN

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2157, 25 May 1914, Page 4

The Dominion. MONDAY, MAY 23, 1914. THE HEALTH CAMPAIGN

The report on the health of tho children attending our State Schools presented to the Wellington Education Board by Dn. Elizabeth Gvsu descries the careful attention of parents and teachers, and of tho educational authorities. The number of .defects found is certainly surprisingly large, but as tho necessary statistical information to enable us to institute comparisons with the state of affairs in New Zealand five or ten years ago does not exist, it is impossible to state with anything iiko curacy whether the general trend is up or down. It is difficult also for the ordinary layman to form a true idea as to the seriousness of the various diseases enumerated in tho Medical Inspector's report. There is no doubt ample scope for both the doctor and the dentist in our schools, and it is plain that their services will have to be used more extensively in the future. We arc at present only laying the foundations of a farreaching scheme within the sphere of our education system for fighting disease with all the resources which mod* ern science has placed at our disposal. The State has already accepted a share of the responsibility of combating the ills of infancy, and much is also being done by voluntary effort, with the result that th;nng recent years there has been a grout full in the rat-?, of infantile mortality in all civiliecd countries. The : health campaign has now boon extended to the hchools, in order that our young people, whoa tlvy go out in to the world, may be equipped for the battle of life with sound liodics as well as wcll-traincd minds. Physical fitness is one of the most imi-! damcutal factors of national v.vSlbeing, and it is absolutely essential from tho point of view of public health that disease should be effectively grappled with in its early

stages in a ..comprehensive'' and s.Vstcinatic .wisy.'..- Hut. the medical inspection 'ii'f schools oannot'do much gixjd unless the parents are prepared to co-operate whole-heartedly with (he doctors, ■ and it is,. therefore, rather discouraging to find that, this co-operation is not so'complete as it might be. Dn. _Gt;NN states that in oiiu pLici! she visited not thirty per <.vnt. of the children examined last year .hud been attended to; but in another instance no less than eighty p-i'r cent, of the children previously examined'had received medical treatment. , It .may. be found that die method of communicating to parents the necessary information concerning their children is at fault.

It ie undoubtedly one of the primary v duties of the educational authorities to soe that- the school buildings are ns healthy as possible, but, judging by Dn. Gjjnn's report, some of the schools visited are far from satisfactory in this respect. It is useless to establish a system of medical inspection if the buildings in which the children are taught are not clean and wholesome. Dark and badly-ventilated rooms are not conducive either to good health or mental activity, and from both these standpoints the environment of the scholars should be made as bright and invigorating as possible. In disctissiug the report the Chairman of tho Board of Education drew attention to the large number of children who, in the opinion of tho inspector, are suffering from malnutrition; but as regards such easesas these, it is cjnitcs possible that further explanation and a more complete and detailed investigation than is possible in the more or less rapid inspection of a school would very materially modify the impression convoyed by the figures contained in ths report. Great care should be taken not to cause unnecessary alarm by anything in the- way of overstatement as to the extent or gravity of the defects discovered. Many people, arc only too apt, in any case, to entertain exaggerated ideas regarding their own ailments and those of other people. Sensational pronouncements may possibly succeed in Arresting attention fora while, but in tbp long run thoy will tend to . undermine the confidence of parents and bring the whole system into disfavour. They arc also liable to give rise to friction, and may cause"'the authorities a good deal of unexpected trouble. It is stated that in seine cases the results of the examination l»vo ken communicated direct to tho chtMr-eij. This ought not to be I done. - It is likely to cause the chili dron unnecessary alarm, and in other I ways .do more harm than good. Any ; defects discovered should be report- ; ed to thc_ parents, on whom lies tho ' responsibility of securing further advice- and treatment. The system of medical inspection requires to bo carried out with tact and judgment, and if this is done, and it is* combined with physical drill on scientific lines, it cannot fail to raise the physical standard of the nation, and thereby strengthen the physical basis on which the character and .mental alertness of the young people have to bo built up. Professor Finduy tells us that it is now acknowledged that the function of the public school must include d;ie tendance for the physical frame, and that tho teaetor, if need arise, must minister as a nurse as well as ,in instructor. He points cm that tho collection of scholars day by day provides an opportunity for successful diagnosis, and oversight such as can never lie rivalled by the isolated efforts of family practice. The whole, matter is of such great national importance that progress should be made along the surest and soundest) lines, and.every precaution should be taken to prevent such a promising experiment from being hampered in its oarly stages by any course of action likely to alienate the sympathy of tho parents' or tho general public.