H—3l

During the year under review, applications were invited from registered dentists for appointment in the salaried dental service. The result was disappointing, and it was decided to advertise in the United Kingdom. As a result, appointments are being offered to a number of United Kingdom applicants. Premises have been secured at various centres, and these are being adapted and equipped in readiness to be staffed by full-time salaried dental surgeons. School Dental Service Twenty additional treatment centres have been established during the year, making the total number 476, as against 456 at the end of the previous year. At the 31st March,. 1948, the staff numbered 709, including 202 student dental nurses in training. The output of school dental nurses from the Training School has been rather more than sufficient to make good current wastage, but not sufficient to augment the field staff to the extent that is necessary to deal effectively with the increased school population. The question of increasing the intake of student dental nurses is under consideration. The number of children under regular treatment is 233,981, an increase of 7,183 during the year. The number of schools receiving treatment is 2,331, as compared with 2,313 at the end of the previous year. The total number of operations for the year was 1,598,982. This included 931,925 reparative fillings in both permanent and deciduous teeth and 177,587 preventive fillings, a total of 1,109,512 fillings. In contrast with this figure, which represents approximately the number of teeth preserved for useful service, the number of teeth removed as. unsaveable (or in some cases to relieve overcrowding) was 66,750, a ratio of 6-02 extractions to every 100 fillings. Training of Dental Nurses. —The Wellington Dental Clinic and Dominion Training School for Dental Nurses continues to fulfil its dual function of training school dental nurses and providing dental care for the pupils of certain of the schools in "Wellington City. Associated with the main institution in Willis Street are the Dental Clinic Annexe in Tinakori Road and the two hostels for student dental nurses—namely, Hunter House, in Hobson Street, and the Glen Road Hostel, in Kelburn. The former hostel was enlarged during the year by the purchase of an adjoining property in order to provide for the increased number of student dental nurses now being trained. At the date of this report the teaching staff of the Dominion Training School is below strength, thus throwing an additional strain on the remaining members of the staff, who under existing conditions are called upon in any case to train two drafts per year. The total output of trained school dental nurses for the year under review was 94. Health Education That the school dental nurses are impressed with the preventive nature of their work is shown by the fact that, despite the shortage of staff and the arrears of treatment in many areas, the volume of health education work performed was greater than during the previous year. The total number of activities amounted to 8,530, as against 7,593 in the previous twelve months. New material has been made available for the field staff during the year. The health education staff has given post-graduate instruction, in the field as well as conducting regular classes in dental health education for student dental nurses at the Dominion Training School. They have also continued to be responsible for the publication of the School Dental Service Gazette.

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