Valmai Trevena
After the war the government was hoping to make people's lives better by trying to get rid of diseases and helping people with mental and physical disabilities.
In 1953 I began my job as a health visitor in the area between Bow Street and Glandyfi. After the war the government was hoping to make people's lives better by trying to get rid of diseases and helping people with mental and physical disabilities. In 1948 the National Health Service was introduced which offered free treatment to everyone.
When the babies were a month old we would take over from the midwives and we'd go in to counsel the mothers about the babies' milk, and to make sure that they were feeding the babies properly.
I had an old Morris car and the boot was always full of National Dried Milk tins, orange juice and cod liver oil. I had to visit people in remote places because some women didn't drive and not many people had cars as a consequence of the poverty after the war.
The babies had to be immunized against tetanus, diptheria and whooping cough. Later on, at the end of the 50s, there was immunization against polio and when the child was two years old there were jabs for smallpox. As well as jabs, I tested their hearing with the aid of a toy and a bell, and dealt with any odd little ailments. There was a clinic in the hall in Borth and in the old schoolhouse in Taliesin, and a GP would visit once a month.
I also made visits to schools to stress the importance of the children's cleanliness. They had BCG and a mantoux test. The older children had a medical examination in the first year and the last year of secondary school.
We would also visit the elderly to test their hearing and their sight and to see if they had trouble walking, and we would monitor safety in the house. People with disabilities didn't have good facilities and it was very difficult for them at that time.
During this period more grants were introduced. One of these grants was the child allowance where the family would receive eight shillings for a second child, but apart from the pension the elderly received no money.
I enjoyed my job very much as I was out in the open air and meeting interesting people, hoping to help them. After the war everyone was looking forward to the 'Brave New World'.
