PHYSICAL EXAMINATIONS 



If the recapitulation blank on which the medical inspector 

 reports his work by schools for a term or year is furnished with 

 spaces for recording these combinations, the data from the individ- 

 ual cards can be rapidly and easily transferred. This makes it 

 easy to bring together data for any part of the system for study 

 and report. The scheme also has the advantage of showing 

 automatically the number of pupils not defective and those 

 suffering respectively from one, two, three, or four of these impor- 

 tant defects. Moreover, by means of this scheme it is easy to 

 discover the total number of cases of defective teeth, eyes, etc., 

 both singly and in combinations. Most important of all, the plan 

 furnishes valuable material for discovering causes and effects. 



SUMMARY. Physical examinations aim to insure for each 

 child such physical and mental vitality as will best enable him to 

 take full advantage of the free education offered by the state. 

 There is a mass of convincing evidence showing that a large 

 percentage of all school children suffer from remediable physical 

 defects which can be prevented or cured if detected early in life. 



In the average city school system, about 65 per cent of the 

 children have physical defects serious enough to warrant treatment 

 by a physician, oculist, or dentist. Nearly 85 per cent of all these 

 defects are those of teeth, throat, eyes, and nose. Complete 

 examinations require from three to ten minutes per child. Eleven 

 American states have laws providing for the physical examination 

 of school children. 



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