The Waterbury Democrat., 1946-11-23
Dr. M. M. Eliot Lends Fight tor Child Health
~ MARIANNE RACmNER

n took a var to help ne. Martha M. Eio& oseak Into tlAe medical psofeSSion, and today she & nehte ina a war of her own Co Wsgead the benefls ol child health b every hamlet ln the country.
 We are sentimental about our children. but not really Vhild- minded.s sAys Dr. Eliot There are many fane individual health pro- grams in certain cities and in many schools. e0l there is no complete overall program for maternity care and ehsld health in our country"
 Overcoming obstacles iS nothing new for Dr. Eliot. The war eSner~ eency of leis opened the way Tor her to get an inteFnshlp at a BoS- ton hospitai after her graduation from Johns Hopkins ha ieie Fol- lowing work at hoSpitals in St. Louis and New Haven, she joined the staff at the vale School of Medicine and remained there for iA years. In i9sS she switched 70 government service and today IS associate chief of the Children's Bureau d the u. $. Federal Social Security Agency and the first wom- an president of the American Plo- lac Health Association.
 MILLIONS FOR CHILD HEALTH
 For the Children's Bureau she has responsibility for allocataon Of sisa& -million granted the depart- nent for child health and welfare work. Used to supplement state ana local funds ear-markeo Tor the same purpose n is twice as much as the depart, ment has had before but n still spreads pretty thinly over the ~
 m that respect says Dr. Eliot, Britain Is away ahead ot the United States.
 when I visited England dur ine the war. a public health ofh- cial there complained that some English mothers had to travel as far as six miles to attend a clinic Imaginel Only six milesl Why there are a thousand counties in the United States that haven't even enc public health nurse"
 Half the children of this coun- try live In rural communities, acc coriing to pr. Eliot. and a quar- ter of these communities haven single baby clinic. Thirty y-firS million school children undergo regular health examinations-ex' aminations lasting one to three minutes per child--far too short 2 time for an adequate checkup. Ye' ! juvenile delinquency and conse' uuent adult maladjustment can os traced to lack of proper health and welfare influences in childhood.
 Maternal and child health mus be a cooperative community Soo pr. Eliot insists. Local health de- uartmentS must work with schools hoSpitals. doctors and dentists
 MATERNITY CARE
 A well rounded program start with maternity care. Dr. Eliot says This includes not only physical cart of the propsective mother but als' advice to the mother on the car of the child. Adequate hospitaliza tion during confinement will m lcrease both the mothers and child chance Of survival and give tn child a normal start in life.
 The health department mus cooperate with the physician n seeing a child during his first year, IDr. Eliot believes Later on. bn nursery school becomes a partner lTt is important. too, that ootl mother and father receive guioanc' in caring for a child's emouona and mental health as well as m physical well-being."
 At school. health can be goaroe. bv active co-operation among al concerned. This work should no stop with the eighth grade as loo often the case. but should con tinue right through high school.
 aNot enough public services ar heinz offered now" Dr. Eliot con cludes. Tt is the job of the stat health authorities to point out tn possibilities to individual com l FnafnitieS"