HEALTH IN SCHOOLS

Hokitika Guardian, 26 June 1933, Page 8

HEALTH IN SCHOOLS

DISEASE IS DECREASING. VALUE OF MEDICAL WORK. CHRISTCHURCH, June 22. An address on the work of school medical officers and uni'ses was given the members of the Canterbury Education Board this morning by Dr. Ada Paterson, Director of School Hygiene, Dr. Paterson said that though medical work in the schools the general standard of the children’s health had

improved and Statistics showed that the child of to-day was heavier and taller than was the case ten years ago. The school age death-rate had also declined.

Dr. Paterson, who has filled the position of Director of School Hygiene for tlie past ten years, explained that though the staff of her department had been retrenched on the grounds of economy, good service was still being given to the schools. The work carried out last year, which was about equal to that done in 1931, included 72,000 complete examinations of children, 36,000 partial examinations and 14,030 interviews with parents on the subject of their children’s health. This co-operation between parents and medical officers was valuable in forming more friendly relations.

The scnool nurses formed, a link between the school and the home, continued the doctor. There work was of a varied nature, and it was pleasing to know that the nurses did not take a literal interpretation of their duties. They were, always ready to give assistance outside their normal duties. These nurses had., last year, paid 15,000 visits to homes, and in many cases, where parents could not afford the expence of a doctor and taking a child to hospital, this work was done by the nurses. Several hundred health talks were also given. “The percentage of defects found in school children last year was not mater. Tally different from the 1931 figures,” said Dr. Paterson. “During the last ten years, however, the decline has been rapid. There has been a very •definite decrease in the number of skin diseases and in verminous conditions. Many people fail t.o realise the volume of work which has brought this about. Apart from the work of the nuives, tile teachers and parents have al] worked magnificently. “A marked decrease has also taken place in the incidence of physicial defects, arid gross cases are rarely encountered ' now. An important fact diseKsed by statistics is that the New Zealand school children to-day are heavier and taller than they were ten years agd. '•’School absenteeism lias decreased 5 per cent, since 1920, the attendance ; figure for 1920 being 87 per cent, and' 6 in 1930 92.2 per cent. This must be attributed to the improvement which has come about in the children’s health. ,J V - .

“You ate all familiar with the fact that, the infant mortality rate has decreased -in ' New IZealand,” continued Dr. Paterson, “but tlib school age rate has also-decreased. The number r>f deaths from tuberculosis has definitely decreased.”