Public Health Authorities should be empowered to administer these benefits through women health officers and maternity centres.
_Notification of Births._--Notification of births and still-births is now compulsory throughout the country, and in order to make it effective, an adequate number of Health Visitors should be appointed in every area.
_Women Health Officers._--The status of Health Visitors should be raised, their salaries being increased, and three qualifications being required--_i.e._, midwifery, sanitary, and nursing certificates.
_Midwifery and Nursing._--These services should be organised by the Public Health Authorities, which already supervise midwives. Longer training for midwives should be required, and an adequate salary secured to them by the Public Health Authorities. A charge of 10s. might be made to mothers employing them, to be remitted if the circumstances require it. This is the only method of meeting the present shortage of midwives, which is particularly serious in rural districts. It is also the only way of securing skilled attention for the women at a charge within their reach, and at the same time of securing adequate payment for midwives. Municipal midwives could be employed with a doctor.
The administration of the Treasury grant for nursing should also be placed under the Public Health Authority.
_Maternity and Infant Centres._--These centres should be places where expectant and nursing mothers and children up to school age can come for advice and treatment, so that they may be kept well and made well. Their organisation will depend on local circumstances, but it will be found desirable in most cases to open several centres, so that they may be near the people’s homes and serve the different classes of women in different localities.
Advice to expectant mothers might be given either at local maternity centres or at centres at hospitals.
It is important that treatment of a simple nature should be given with advice at maternity centres. Nourishment being often the treatment mothers most need, provision should be made for dinners for expectant and nursing mothers when ordered by the doctor. Simple talks on personal hygiene, infants’ clothing, etc., should be arranged, and saving-clubs organised.