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training programme commenced, and treatment of patients under way ; and, further, that in the last nine months work has proceeded smoothly in spite of the many unexpected difficulties that have arisen from time to time. During this time very definite progress has been made in bringing overdue work up to date and in calling up patients who were waiting for treatment ; but much still remains, and until this is well in hand further extension would be unwise. " Annexe. —Until October, 1940, the annexe in Tinakori Road was under the control of Mr. Leslie, with certain sections of the training of both first- and second-year students still being carried out in this building. At this stage it was decided to use the annexe for clinical instruction alone and transfer all junior students to the Willis Street Clinic. Under the new arrangement the loss of time incurred by the instructional staff in transit between the two institutions has been avoided, and a far more equitable disposition of the staff made possible. Miss A. E. Early, 8.D.5., is now officer in charge. " Examinations. —(a) Two final examinations were held during the year. The first, in September, 1940, was for the second group of the sixteenth draft, and all the 35 candidates were successful in passing. " The second final examination was held in March, 1941, for the first group of the seventeenth draft. Of 40 in this draft, only 34 were considered sufficiently advanced in training to be eligible to sit the examination. Of those who sat, 28 passed, 3 received partial passes, and 3 failed. " The external examiners on these two occasions were Mr. A. H. Weir, of Christchurch (September, 1940), and Mr. A. C. Macintyre, Christchurch (March, 1941). " (b) Primary examinations were also held for the first and second groups of the eighteenth draft, the first being in September, 1940, and the second in March, 1941. " In the first examination (September), 36 sat the examination, 30 passed, and 6 gained partial passes. In the second (March), 34 sat, 27 passed, 2 gained partial passes, and 5 failed. " The Course of Training. —Mention was made in the last annual report of the reduction that had been effected in the length of certain lecture courses. From a review of the results of examinations' held during the last twelve months, and from personal experience in examining all groups in training I am of opinion that a further reduction should be made in the subjects of the primary course, and more stress placed on those taken in the following intermediate period of training. Shorter courses with more intensive instruction and a higher standard of passes would make more effective officers than under the present plan. " Hostels for Student Dental Nurses. —The three hostels, ' The Mansions ' (Ghuznee Street), the Hobson Street hostel, and the ' Friends' ' Hostel have all continued to function satisfactorily under the control of Miss Pengelly, Mrs. Wood, and Miss Searell respectively. The Department is indebted to the Society of Friends for the continuance of the arrangement whereby student dental nurses are so well cared for in the ' Friends' ' Hostel, and also to Miss Pengelly, who retired in March after controlling ' The Mansions ' for four years. "It is unfortunate that plans for building a new hostel have had to be postponed. This makes it necessary to continue the use of ' The Mansions ' for a further term. This hostel has very poor amenities and is much below the standard of Hobson Street and the ' Friends " Statistics, Wellington Dental Clinic. —Attendances recorded and operations performed in the Wellington Dental Clinic for the years from 1938-39 to 1940-41 are shown below : — Attendances. Fillings. Extractions. Other Operations. " 1938-39 .. 52,997 42,419 3,894 33,894 " 1939-40 .. 62,544 37,264 2,850 41,100 " 1940-41 .. 65,861 40,413 3,395 44,966 " Total attendances recorded and operations performed to 31st March, 1941 :— Attendances. fillings. Extractions. Other Operations. 681,298 4-53,160 82,653 400,720 " The appointment of a small group of' experienced dental nurses to the Wellington Clinic to deal with the more difficult patients and undertake work beyond the capability of a student dental nurse has been a long-felt want, and thus it is gratifying to be able to record that five trained dental nurses commenced duty in January of this year. " Waiting-list.—The number of names on the waiting-list of the Wellington Clinic as at 31st March for the last four years is as follows : 1937, 3,398 ; 1938, 1,095 ; 1939, 229 ; 1940, 1,092 ; 1941, 587. "During this year 1,341 new patients commenced treatment, and of the 587 now waiting, none have been listed for more than five months. " The ' Unofficial' waiting-list containing the names of children under the age of two years and a half now stands at 630. Nearly 200 children were called up from this ' baby ' list during the year." Dental Health Education. As the staff of the School Dental Service increases, more and more is being done in the direction of teaching children the importance of caring for their teeth and of observing the fundamental rules for preserving dental health. There is a steadily increasing interest being taken in this important aspect of the work not only by the school dental nurses and teachers, but by the children themselves. Experience shows that it is not difficult to interest the children in this matter, but that it is well-nigh impossible to reach the parents, and without their co-operation much of the teaching given to the children must of necessity be ineffective. Nevertheless, the work that is being carried out assiduously by school dental nurses in this direction is undoubtedly having beneficial results, and this is shown

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