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31b6db81-025b-472f-90c6-95a60d17ed10 | In my foregoing letter, I have mentioned the desirability of providing suitable employment for people who have reached retirement age. I Page 10 certainly want them to retire. They must be relieved of their more onerous duties and they must make way to allow for promotion amongst the junior ranks. Older people excel in experience, patience, in wisdom and breadth of vision; the young are noted for energy, enterprise, enthusiasm, the capacity to learn new things, to adapt themselves and to innovate. These general attributes of older people and the young give some idea of the division in work which must be made. What we want to do for these old people is to give them tasks without any reference to time and let them work in their own time and at their own pace and pay them for the work they do. |
8aff028c-ac99-4039-820c-77fc0a442e8a | I see no reason why an old medical officer, who examined thousands and thousands of school children, should not be apportioned so many schools, particularly in the country, to look after, and why he should not be allowed, subject to the teaching requirements of the schools, to carry out his work in his own time and at his own speed! EMPLOYMENT Mr. G. W. Vincent, of the Barking Employment Exchange, has kindly supplied me with the following information regarding employment in Barking:— "During 1950, the employment position in Barking for skilled and unskilled workers was good, and the level of unemployment remained low. In December, 1950, only 202 persons were registered as unemployed. The proportion of disabled persons unemployed was also very small. "The Remploy Factory in Thames Road provides employment for persons who are so severely disabled as to require specially sheltered conditions. "The service of the Industrial Rehabilitation Centre at Egham is available for the residents of Barking. |
d0ce75f2-cb7b-4baa-856d-e964e253c6a5 | This Centre provides courses for disabled persons who, though not under medical treatment, have lost touch with working conditions, or are unable because of their disability to follow their previous occupations. The courses are not directly vocational, but are designed to restore fitness and confidence, to allow a gradual readjustment to working conditions, and to test the suitability of the disabled person for particular kinds of work." Page 11 It came as no surprise to me to learn that relatively few people were unemployed, and I am glad to know there is this high level of employment. I would, however, be happier if I could think that more was being done to put round pegs in round holes and square pegs in square holes. To my mind there can be nothing more hateful and nothing more futile than for people to spend the greater part of their lives doing something for which they are not suited and something in which they cannot possibly be interested. What is more, we must make provision for seeing that the right types physically are recruited for the right jobs. |
c79cfb49-eaf9-4a38-8c57-91913d7afcc8 | TRAVELLING FACILITIES The sprawl of London still continues, and more and more people are constrained to spend a substantial part of their days travelling to and from their work. Fortunately for me I seldom need to use the underground railway system, but I am sure that if all the unfortunate people who do use it by routine were to keep detailed diaries, many entries would be made, similar in vein to the following note I have written in mine:— "From time to time I have spoken and written about the transport to Barking, about the sewer that runs on four wheels, and I have made other uncomplimentary remarks about the whole system. What I have written has, I feel, a ring of truth about it, and, of course, it has been written from actual personal experience. "My previous experiences, however, were completely eclipsed by a journey made some time after Christmas, 1950. "It was about 5.15 p.m. |
f003eb51-86a5-4a0f-944d-08c15695c5cd | when I began my homeward journey to Barking from Hclborn Station. At that station I let one train go by, hoping for something better in the next train. I boarded the next train and thought I had taken part in a Rugby scrum, only to find my conception of what did actually happen was childish, because at Chancery Lane a dynamic force that would put to shame the best of our Rugby Clubs pushed its way in, and I felt myself so confined I feared I might crumble up at any time, with the knowledge that to crumple up and sink at the knees would almost certainly mean being trampled to death. Page 12 "At the next station, therefore, disregardful of the convenience of other people, I struggled out, and should never have done so had it not been for the insistent demands I made that I should be let out. |
165a6d63-c429-4fa2-819c-b88377d3a00a | After being revived somewhat on the platform I boarded the next train to find that things were all but as bad, save only I was standing next to the door instead of being wedged in the compartment like a sardine. This state of affairs went on as far as Mile End, when I changed on to the District Line—I thought things would be much better, but truth to tell they did not improve until we reached Plaistow, and even all the way to Barking the District train was seriously overcrowded. "For an old man of 63 to try to travel on such a railway is stupid, and it must be a serious hindrance to the health of people who are a long way off being so old as I am. There is no doubt in my mind that the distressing circumstances under which so many people travel to work and home again is one of our most serious factors militating against a healthy life. |
86d687bc-635b-48a9-8383-abb79af2d924 | "I invite people to turn to the history books and read the story of the Black Hole of Calcutta and then ask what should be done to the people who force us to accept travelling conditions which arc comparable with the Black Hole and other similar distressing imprisonments." Another matter which needs attention is the provision of more and better shelter facilities for people waiting for buses at busy stops. We must see that at all places where at peak hours there are queues it is possible for people to be housed in the dry. I see no reason why the bus people could not take a shop or even two shops and turn them into waiting places with a covered way over the pavement. The cost of acquiring the premises is only like putting money from one national pocket into another national pocket, and can be regarded as a transfer; and even maintenance, which is usually a serious problem, would in this case be minimal. |
003122e5-c761-4da2-8812-cb51fd3b7a8b | Alternatively, so far as Barking is concerned the time is overdue for the Barking Station to be entirely redesigned, and when this is done it should be possible to make ample provision for all the buses which stop in the middle of the town, and for these buses to have a proper waiting place where the people can remain dry if not warm and dry. Page 13 To conclude, I should like to make a plea for the provision of special facilities for mothers to attend to their children in railway trains and stations. LEISURE We are constantly being reminded of the need there is for increased leisure time to be occupied usefully. Mothers of young children, however, almost alone among all sections of the community, have been excluded from the great social gain of leisure in the last 50 years, and it is particularly about the services which would help them in this matter that I wish to write. The difficulties of mothers have been aggravated by war-time and post-war conditions, but the essential problem is independent of these conditions. |
978fd9ac-b232-4c11-a1d2-7396f3eb3c54 | It arises from the fact that the care of young children is a twenty-four hours a day job. Outside help, whether paid or voluntary, has become increasingly difficult to obtain, whilst at the same time standards of parental responsibility have risen and women have gradually attained a more independent status, greatly extending their influence beyond the home. Hence, there arises amongst many women a sense of conflict between having children and leading what they regard as a tolerable life. This conflict cannot be resolved without community help which is justified in fairness to mothers and in the interest of the community as a whole, and the extension of the following services could do much towards this end:— Domestic Help Service The need for help is felt (1) in household emergencies, e.g., illness, confinement of the mother, caring for elderly relative, etc.; (2) in the normal running of the home where there are young children and (3) in the desire for recreation and rest. |
f7b564e9-d921-4ac8-8595-3c4ffc0eb332 | When the domestic help service was originally started it was intended to cover mainly home confinements but was later extended to include other emergencies. The National Health Service Act, however, has given a general power to local authorities to provide domestic help for "Households where such help is required owing to the presence of any person who is Page 14 ill, lying-in, an expectant mother, mentally defective, aged, or a child not over compulsory school age." This general power does provide an avenue whereby assistance can be given to mothers in the normal day-today management of households with young children. Although it is hoped that eventually this facility will become available, at the present time recruitment to the domestic help service is barely sufficient to meet the needs of what may be called "emergency cases." In particular, great demands are made upon the service by households with chronic sick persons, who are awaiting admission to hospital, and who oftentimes have to be nursed at home for long periods because of the general shortage of hospital beds. |
fd065aa0-661b-4769-bb40-53f388388426 | Day Nurseries Mothers are often called upon to undertake commissions, not necessarily of an emergency nature, which cannot be performed satisfactorily, or perhaps not be performed at all, if they are obliged to have with them their young children. Neighbours, relatives and friends can help very much on these occasions, but it would be a boon to women if they could occasionally leave their young children at a Day Nursery so that they could feel free to do anything they wished by themselves in the knowledge that their children would be in good hands. I am writing more fully on this matter in the section dealing with Day Nurseries. "Sitters-In" The time when women with young children are perhaps most housebound, is in the evenings, and it is very desirable that they should have the opportunity of going out with their husbands on some recreative pursuit, be it only a weekly visit to the cinema. |
a3e10546-6b06-45ab-8481-ca962fd0280e | The vogue for "sitters-in" has become very popular in America and I only hope that it will become an established feature of everyday life in this country. House Design Elsewhere in this report will be found reference to the efforts which are being made to improve the amenities of ordinary homes, particularly Page 15 those being built by the Council. Directly or indirectly, many of these improvements affect the household duties of housewives by making them easier and more congenial. One of the matters which is receiving special attention is the provision of adequate facilities for washing and drying clothes and bed linen. Laundry work, however, even in a well-designed house, is a back-breaking job if there are no mechanical aids. There is a strong case for the more universal use of washing machines, and in this it might be possible for local authorities to provide washing machines on hire-purchase terms on a system of priorities based on family needs; or to make more extensive use of the powers given under the Baths and Wash-Houses Act. |
b5b894a3-900e-4db2-932c-924040f48de2 | It is important, however, that any wash-houses provided should be well designed and equipped on imaginative lines. I have deliberately written the foregoing because I believe that, generally speaking, housewives above all other sections of the community do need more leisure time and the matters I have mentioned are those which people concerned in promoting Public Health do have before them. There is, of course, the other problem of providing suitable recreational facilities for leisure hours, but this, however, is such a wide subject that I only propose to deal with one small part of it—namely, Parks and Open Spaces, which do figure a great deal in the everyday lives of many people, particularly town-dwellers. |
d598cb1a-9425-46e6-9d6b-11c4973ec310 | Some of the importance which I attach to our Parks and Open Spaces can be gauged from the following letter which I wrote to a Parks Superintendent:— "You have not received a letter from me before, but this is not because I think that our Parks and Open Spaces are not important from the standpoint of public health, but because quite frankly, I have not found the time as I should have done to communicate with you. "Now that our leisure is becoming quite as important as our work, the part which you have to play is similarly increasingly important, and I do hope that whilst on the one hand our open spaces will be just as beautiful, if not indeed more beautiful, the grounds will be so laid out as to give the maximum number of people the maximum amount of healthy recreation. In other words, I want Page 16 them to cater not only for recreation of the body, but recreation of the mind, if I may be allowed to divorce these two from one another, when in reality they are, in fact, one. |
2cc3b6af-f820-4f73-af47-a75b09292a49 | "The point is that the boredom of repetitive work in which so many people are engaged to-day, means they cannot work so many hours as did our forefathers, and what is more, the boredom of this work also means that we must cater increasingly for self-expression during our periods of leisure. "A craftsman making a Chippendale chair had a lot of fun during the day, and all he required at night was a pint of beer in the evening sunshine outside "The Cauliflower," but a man sticking bits of wood together in one approved pattern, aided by every mechanical device possible, requires something much more with which to occupy his leisure; something that will compensate him for the dreary routine of factory life. "The cinema cannot do this. |
905e1e02-cdae-4643-8519-4a801283b306 | It is enough to look at a queue outside a cinema to see that the people have dull, vacant faces; they are utterly bored, obviously they have not even the art of amusing themselves, and for a shilling or two, when they have got to the head of the queue, they wallow in an atmosphere of fictitious excitement. They identify themselves with the heroes and heroines and the villains, their emotions are titillated and they have not genuinely 'lived,' in the same sense that a man does when he plays a game of rugger, or when he plays an exciting and strenuous game of tennis. "We must look to you above everybody to provide this healthy recreation. The days in the year in this country when we can get this healthy recreation out of doors are all too few, and as you know, we have to make the best use of these too few days. |
a5987353-b3c4-4b72-8206-184f173604e3 | If you cannot help to teach us how to spend our leisure, we may as well spend more time at work, because truly is it said—'For Satan finds some mischief still, for idle hands to do.' " DAY NURSERIES There are in Barking four Day Nurseries and these have accommodation for a total of 234 children. We were in a chronic state so far as waiting lists were concerned, because throughout the year they were far higher than the total number Page 17 of places. We had hoped to be able to progress with the building of another nursery, but this project is still around the corner. There are both advantages and disadvantages in a child going to a day nursery, but I do believe the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. There are certain essential difficulties in running a day nursery, and in the ordinary course of things somebody is sure to get measles at some time or another, and somebody is sure to get whooping cough, and this puts the nursery in quarantine so that admissions are delayed. |
b179b2f6-58c3-4de0-aa56-dcf8c5bd6581 | At the present time admissions to these Nurseries are governed by the following priorities, viz:— 1. Children of mothers who are employed in industries which are vital to production for essential home needs or for export; or 2. Children of mothers who are ill or being confined; or 3. Children of employed unmarried mothers who are anxious to keep their babies with them but cannot do so without some provision for the babies' care during the day. I am sure that the scope of these nurseries should be extended. Once again I want to emphasise that civilisation is only an affair of yesterday so far as the history of man is concerned. Women were never intended to be washing the crockery and cleaning the fire irons and dusting the chairs and washing the curtains morning, noon and night, with their children everlastingly around them, and to my mind it is the quintessence of pathos to see some women as you do of an afternoon pushing a pram and looking bored. |
383c23e4-f549-4ff5-886b-43904a8942b4 | I know I shall have a large number of critics for having said women look bored, and some people will contradict me. It is quite true that when you stop and talk to them the proud mother's face lights up and she is vital whilst she is showing off her baby, but I ask people to watch these women when they are walking along and do not know that they are being watched. A most devoted mother should have time off and she should have somewhere where she can place her baby for some hours, and what she does with those few hours should be her own business. It is just as necessary for her to have a few hours when she can go to the pictures as it is for people who work to have time off for recreation, and I do hope Page 18 the time will come when our nurseries will cater for this very necessary means of improving the lot of those women who "never get a minute" to themselves. NOISE Noise is an enemy to the health of the public. |
b99cd152-eac9-458a-a12a-ab0f82795e76 | It seems that we can get accustomed to almost anything, in fact, so accustomed are we to noise that if we do get out into the depth of the country, particularly in the evening, when the cows have stopped their lowing and the lambs have stopped their bleating, the stillness is almost oppressive. But, we are something like the widow's donkey; she taught him to feed on straw instead of hay, but unfortunately he died, and it is much the same with us. We get accustomed to noise, but it kills something in us. we, in the Public Health department, are very much aware of this. |
032f3e4c-df14-4251-b9f8-e3dce7badb1e | We have a relatively large general office where typewriters are tapping, the duplicating machine is making—anoise (how much it might be libellous for me to write), the telephone bells are ringing and I am out asking sommeone to do something, and I am persuaded it is only because we cannot assess the disability that we do not face the fact that all this noise not only decreases personal efficiency, not only causes mental fatigue, but also sets up complications, inhibitions and frustrations which, even though they begin as fancies of the mind, end up with physical defects also. The noise of our underground railways, the eternal grinding of our traffic, the noise in the factory and the noise in the home have an effect on us. I would like to say how much I dislike the noise of a certain carpet sweeper! A most curious thing happened to me recently. |
504092d0-fe38-422f-a5a4-87176bd90660 | I met someone who said he did not believe that noise was a factor in producing either mental fatigue or bodily fatigue, and I could not understand anybody holding this opinion, because it is not only contrary to my personal experience but contrary to general experience. In fact, I am going to be plain blunt and say that I believe that noise is amongst one of our foremost troubles today, so far as the promotion of health is concerned, and that if we could get together in reducing noise, we should have done far more to promote the health of the public than some of the wonder-drugs with their "wonderful results" which have so captured the imagination of the public at the present time. Page 19 AMBULANCE SERVICE Since the coming into force of the National Health Service Act, the ambulance service is no longer administered from Barking. Contrariwise, it is administered centrally from Chelmsford. Dr. |
231072e2-0ddb-4640-bee5-a713c6660c3b | Cowan, the County Medical Officer, advises me that normally the ambulance station in Barking has an establishment of five ambulance vehicles and, of course, there is a system of mutual support between the various County Depots. The service is extensively used as shown by the enclosed statistics for 1950, for which I am indebted to Dr. Cowan, but really we know very little about the service. From time to time we have had a few complaints which have been forwarded to the County Hall and it is within my personal knowledge that there has been difficulty in arranging for the transport of persons to outpatient departments at peak periods. The County scheme has been running for the better parr of three years, but members of the public still come up to our enquiry office in order to make arrangements for the conveyance of patients to and from hospital. |
3457b5fa-4559-4c35-bb4b-253235ca4077 | SITTERS-IN In a previous section of this Report, I have touched upon the desirability of sitters-in being available so that husbands and wives may enjoy recreative pursuits together, but there is yet another more urgent need for sitters-in which is, I think, summed up in the following correspondence which actually passed through my office during the year:— "Dear Dr. Williams, Mr. & Mrs. X. Although there is probably nothing you can do to ameliorate the lot of the above aged couple I feel that I must write to you concerning them in order to leave no stone unturned. AMBULANCE STATISTICS 1950 Maternity cases 841 Infectious diseases 205 Street accidents 617 Home accidents 314 Out-patient attendances 13,005 Admissions and discharges—hospital 3,978 Total cases 18,960 Total mileage covered 124,354 Page 20 I believe that you are acquainted with their case. Mr. |
52e3d3a0-1876-41f5-9be7-f1251dbfbeac | X is about 87 years of age and Mrs. X. about 92. They have a Home Help in the mornings. Mr. X. says that they really need assistance in the house from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day. Mrs. X. frequently falls over. Her husband is very weak and does not look like living much longer. The County Regional Welfare Officer at Romford is unable to find any accommodation where they could be taken for care and attention. With apologies for troubling you, Yours sincerely, Dear Doctor, Mr. & Mrs. X. In the first place allow me to thank you for your letter for which I am indebted to you. I do hope you will keep writing me about such cases, because we do have every due regard to your communication is and I sincerely hope that by constant repetition the time will come when, at last, something will be done. |
1cebf7e6-c7a9-47ae-8451-cdd5574994e6 | It is my concern as Medical Officer of Health that something should be done to ameliorate the lot of these and hundreds of other old people who find themselves in similar circumstances, but from an executive standpoint there is nothing I can do personally. So far as domestic help is concerned, we can and do provide the help to do the domestic chares, but we have no authority to use domestic helps as sitters-in which is really what is required in this case. I can well understand that the County Regional Welfare Officer has been unable to find suitable accommodation for this old couple to go to, because there is not sufficient accommodation to provide for all the cases which require to be looked after as do Mr. and Mrs. |
64255af7-d4d2-4cf7-b30d-8ad43fe41ee3 | X. There is the still further consideration in dealing with cases such as this and that is, if we uproot these old folk from their own familiar surroundings and put them into places which we think are Page 21 very much better for them, it is wrong and some of them, so I am told, die off quite quickly. Yours faithfully, P.S. Your letter has not been in vain, because I propose, leaving out names and addresses, to publish it in one of my Annual Reports where it may do some good." Although I am deeply concerned with the plight of old people such as these, I am equally concerned with those unfortunate people who come to my office to plead for the early admission to hospital of a chronic sick relative or friend and whose continued presence in the home so often means unwarranted hardship and the disruption of family life. |
036de9c7-1461-4c7e-9b84-f695e3565686 | More often than not the person making the plea is the woman of the household, who, having coped with the daytime difficulties of running a home, is faced with a broken night's rest, in order to minister to the needs of the sick person. Again, sitters-in could do much to help. CARE OF THE FEET Foot Clinics I dislike unusual words and I think the word chiropody is not only difficult to pronounce, but it is not what I would call a nice word, and yet I dislike naming Clinics, "Foot Clinics." One reason is that the name "Foot Clinics" leads to misunderstanding because the public get the idea that it has everything to do with the feet, up to and including deformities, and they are a bit annoyed when mistakenly they go to a Foot Clinic and find they should have gone to an Orthpæodic Clinic. |
4118c179-69fb-4ee3-9263-34049321a60d | The public, however, are beginning to use the word chiropody and very possibly in a few years it will be an accepted word with a definite meaning. There are six chiropodists prac- tising in public clinics in Barking, who all work on an appointments system, and who are all kept busy as the enclosed figures will show. CHIROPODY SERVICE I. Treatment sessions 2,658 2. Attendances:— School Children 1,190 M. & C.W. Patients 95 Public Adult Scheme Patients 19,087 Page 22 I am happy to report that there are not many missed attendances because it is, of course, such missed attendances which are the ruination from an economic standpoint of any appointments scheme. My impression is that we are only beginning to deal with this question of chiropody, and that we require far more chiropodists than we have at the present time. |
f31782e0-5646-45e9-bd38-caea0b9eebf7 | This is true so far as the people who attended the Clinics are concerned, and if, in addition to providing a Clinic service, we do happily find we are authorised to undertake domiciliary treatments then we shall require still more chiropodists. I know of little work which can be said to be more productive than chiropody. The housewife who is on her feet all day is, to put it quite frankly, more effective if her feet are properly looked after and the same is true of men and other women who are standing on their feet throughout the day. Not less productive, although the economists may think it so, is the care and attention which is given to the old people, enabling them to continue an active life; in other words, by treating their ingrowing toe nails and other disabilities they find themselves able to get out and about and take necessary exercise, and, what is equally important, to take an interest in what is going on around them. |
dc37ca28-2780-4fa9-9f06-5bca1f9cc21a | Footwear In past reports I have made pungent remarks upon the large number of people who buy, and the footwear people who sell, shoes which are injurious to the feet. I give below a note I made after window shopping, which snows I have still not altered my views:— "The other evening I chanced to look into a shop window in Barking. "In this window there were a lot of ladies' shoes and almost all of them were of the ultra high-heeled type. "The shopkeeper was advertising the fact that some of these shoes had been reduced from an amount of money somewhere in the neighbourhood of 45s. to the sale price of 10s. "On the one hand I was delighted to see these ridiculous shoes on sale at such startling reductions, because this meant the shopkeeper had been unable to sell them for the higher prices. |
5bd8a60b-d4ae-41cb-a415-8a768180f3e4 | On the other hand I was still hurt to think that such shoes could even be given away and more hurt when I came to the conclusion that the shopkeeper knew that some people were still willing to pay 10s. to mutilate their feet." Page 23 CARE OF THE HAIR When I was a post-graduate student, at Cambridge, I went to a lecture by an eminent Professor on "The Minor Horrors of War." The lecture was all about n*t* and b*g*. It is still not quite proper and polite to mention these little creatures, but elsewhere it is an act of obligation to write about this matter so far as school children are concerned. It is a fallacy to suppose that children catch them from each other at school; the plain, blunt fact is that, without saying this is impossible, it is odds on every time that they caught them at home. |
634b2dd0-ef26-4240-91a4-cedf581b6890 | Just as there has been a slight improvement in the diabolical instruments of torture that women put on their feet, so there has been some slight improvement in recent years in the way that women dress their hair, but so long as this "minor horror of peace" remains I can only insist it is positively wrong, as I have said before, for any woman to have a "hair do" which means that she does not brush her hair twice a day, and wash her hair once a week. We have no reliable statistics with regard to the adult population, but the figures which I have quoted, and which have to do with children, show that there is still considerable room for improvement. |
ea5f167a-7778-4a88-a2bb-17f7ff96209f | With regard to hair-do's for men, it would require a game of hide and seek to find out where it is done, and how much it is done, because it is done with all the caution of a Secret Society, but I am told that it is becoming quite the fashion among certain men of the younger generation, and if this goes on men, who up to the present have been relatively free from the stigma of n*t* and b*g*, will find that they, too, have to put their house in order. Fortunately, in this county these intruders do not spend a lot of their time spreading disease, but this could happen and I cannot believe it is very healthy to harbour these visitors. THE IMPORTANCE OF THE RHESUS FACTOR IN PREGNANCY (I am indebted to Mr. B. G. Spiers, F.R.C.S., Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, for the following article.) |
07aa8cab-e296-4d03-8c4a-b639702a4b6d | The Rhesus Factor, which is the name given to one of the constituents of the red blood cells, derives its name from the fact that it was first discovered in the Rhesus monkey. Since the discovery of this actor, Page 24 many previously unexplained tragedies in transfusions and certain diseases in new-born children have been explained and can now largely be avoided. In the population of the world so far tested, approximately 85 per cent. of people have this Rhesus factor and they are called Rhesus Positive. The other 15 per cent. are without this factor and are Rhesus Negative. Every pregnant woman should have her blood tested at the beginning of pregnancy to see if this factor is present. If she is Rhesus Negative, her husband must then be tested himself. It is often difficult for a husband to appreciate why he should be tested and, indeed, some of them refuse to be done. |
0bcb4913-8205-4078-8504-6dcb4cc5440c | It cannot be stressed too strongly that such an attitude on the part of the husband is very unfair to his wife, his unborn child and the people who are going to be responsible for looking after his wife. The Rhesus Positive mother, while very important because she is pregnant, is medically not so important as the Rhesus Negative mother, and every Rhesus Negative mother should be delivered in hospital. The reasons for this statement will appear later in the text. Any pregnant woman, as a result of some accident in labour, may need a blood transfusion, and a Rhesus Negative person must only be transfused with Rhesus Negative blood, whereas a Rhesus Positive person can be transfused with either. Rhesus Negative blood is much easier to obtain in hospital, and that is one reason why the Rhesus Negative mother should be in hospital for delivery. The other reason applies to the baby. |
671a6224-e713-4445-b686-dc3c02d81729 | If the husband is Rhesus Negative, there is no fear of anything untoward happening to the baby. If the husband is Rhesus Positive, in a certain number of cases the baby is Rhesus Positive; but not in every case. Of these Rhesus Negative mothers with Rhesus Positive babies, a certain number develop substances in their blood which we call Antibodies. This nearly always occurs with a second or subsequent pregnancy; hardly ever with a first. If these Antibodies are formed, they pass back into the baby and cause a disease of the blood. It is, therefore, very important that every Rhesus Negative mother with a Rhesus Positive husband should have regular blood tests during pregnancy, so that as soon as Antibodies appear, if they do, treatment can be commenced to help the baby, and also, when the baby is born, all preparations can be ready to transfuse it if it should require it. |
2213af2b-364e-4421-b139-e966f5ffcf88 | The earlier stage a transfusion is given, the better is the baby's chance Page 25 of survival. Unfortunately, if antibodies are present, we cannot tell whether or not the baby will need a transfusion until it is born, but we can make, and we do make, all preparations to deal with such a baby. These Antibodies do not harm the mother in any way but she must not become pregnant again until they have disappeared from her blood, which is in about two years, and this means further regular visits to the hospital for blood testing. The chances of an infant being affected in this way are very small, but for the sake of those few who get it, all these tests must be done on every Rhesus Negative mother, so that we can cut down still further the number of babies born dead, and also the number of those dying in the first month of life. The fact that a mother has had one of these babies affected by this disease does not mean that she cannot have a healthy baby. |
2781e554-b3e2-4ec5-8e23-a78a582ce235 | She can, and she does often, but in this matter she should always consult a consulting obstetrician as to further pregnancies. All obstetricians are only too happy to explain to mothers and fathers as simply as it is possible this rather complicated subject. HEALTH CENTRES The question as to when we are going to have Health Centres in Barking is so constantly cropping up from such a large number of people that I feel I cannot write to these people individually but I would like to make a few remarks to all of them in a general way. The curious thing is that we do have Health Centres in Baiting; this is an anomaly and arises by reason of the fact that some of our Clinics have been recognised as Health Centres for a particular purpose. Generally, our Clinics were growing towards the conception of a Health Centre, and to my mind it was a thousand pities that we were stopped issuing prescriptions for medicaments at these Clinics. |
275710bc-dd66-43c5-bfc7-05a1c594825c | At these clinics, apart from the services designed essentialy for children and mothers, there were the public schemes which catered for all members of the public, i.e. dental, chiropody and specialist clinics for eyes, ear, nose and throat, skin and orthopædics. In other words, apart from a domiciliary service, these Clinics were so far as possible run on Health Centre lines. But the conception of a Health Centre which the public so rightly hold is a place where general practitioners will carry Page 26 out their work with all the help which is commonly available at a Clinic, and when I am asked how soon I think this will be established in Barking 1 do not make very hopeful remarks because, apart from an experimental Centre happening to be built here, I do not think we are likely to have one for many years. |
f990d402-1f3a-4083-aecb-6c3d519de5f9 | It is my opinion that we require five such Health Centres in Barking with such additional Centres as may be necessary if parts of the town, which are not at present built up, should become housing estates, and I cannot see how we could do with one less. With five Centres I think that one more centrally placed than the other should be a special Centre with fuller facilities than the other Centres to aid in diagnosis and treatment. For instance, I cannot see the scope of treatment personally carried out in your Physiotherapy Unit at Manor School being reproduced at other Health Centres; contrariwise, I believe that this would have to be centralised in a main Health Centre. One inherent difficulty is, of course, that general practitioners would want to practise from several of these Centres, perhaps some of them outside Barking, that is if they are to cope with their present wide-flung panel of patients. |
9b207a59-2990-46d8-802a-89a6e6609cfa | I cannot see that Health Centres are going to be highly successful until the practice of any one general practitioner is more or less limited to the area served by the Centre at which he practises. There are other personal and professional difficulties so far as the man in private practice (who practises from his own house) is concerned, and I feel that it will only be as the young men enter practice that the general custom will grow up of running general practice from Health Centres. I have felt for many years that a very real step forward would be to allow medical officers to undertake domiciliary medicine. This would be a small beginning, but I believe it would grow as our other services have grown in response to public demand, and I still believe that we shall have the opportunity of fostering Health Centre practice in this way. CLINIC SERVICES There have been no extensions to public clinic services in Barking during the year, but negotiations were continued for improvements to be effected in clinic accommodation, viz.: Page 27 Upney Clinic. |
ddffe302-6f03-42e5-bc8c-07bb16329c53 | This is a former Civil Defence First Aid post in which the accommodation provided is sub-standard when compared with the general standard in the town. It is proposed that the building should be adapted on lines similar to those adopted for the Porters Avenue Clinic, with the addition of a wing for dental services. The clinic, which is within the curtilage of the Barking Hospital, belongs to the Regional Hospital Board with whom negotiations are in progress for a long term lease to be granted to the Local Health Authority so that the necessary adaptations and addition may be carried out as an economic proposition. New Foot Clinic. The Local Health Authority has approved the erection of a temporary building in the precincts of the Central Clinic for the purpose of housing the Chiropody Clinic at present held in the East Street Clinic. It is envisaged that the East Street Clinic will revert to a dental clinic so that the dental services in the older part of the town may be extended. Extension of Dental Workshop. |
877634fd-f1d4-4777-89e7-8a4f80d24f16 | The dental workshop at the Central Clinic has been operating for a number of years and since the "appointed day" has undertaken an increasing amount of work for priority patients in other Health Areas in the County. Plans have been approved by the Local Health Authority for the workshop to be extended so that output may be facilitated and provision made for a wider catchment area to be served in the future, i.e. enabling more technicians to be employed. Bifrons Dental Clinic. In order to release school accommodation, negotiations are in progress for the transference of the dental clinic held in Bifrons School to a former L.C.C. Rents Office nearby in Bromhall Road. It is estimated that over 90 per cent. of the babies born in the own are still seen at infant welfare clinics, the proportion of expectant mothers attending ante-natal clinics remains high and there has been a still further percentage increase in the number of women attending for post natal examination. |
04bff17a-d92e-489a-b8ca-689fb59876fb | The following services remain available to all members of the public, viz. Ear, Nose and Throat, Ophthalmic, Orthopædic, Skin and Chiropody. The shortage of physiotherapists has made it difficult to maintain an adequate staff at the orthopaedic clinic which has ever-increasing demands made upon it. Page 28 In the tables on pages 37-38 will be found statistical evidence of the work which has been undertaken at the various clinics during the year. |
e5453186-b687-4566-bf2d-e1cb7923e892 | THE PREVALENCE OF AND CONTROL OVER INFECTIOUS AND OTHER DISEASES Notification The following is a summary of the cases notified during the year:— Acute Anterior Poliomyelitis 10 Diphtheria 1 Dysentery 11 Erysipelas 25 Food Poisoning 26 Malaria 2 Measles 422 Meningococcal Infections 2 Pneumonia 76 Puerperal Pyrexia 9 Scabies 33 Scarlet Fever 163 Typhoid Fever 1 Whooping Cough 346 No difficulty was met in arranging for the admission of cases to hospital, and most cases went to Ilford Isolation and Rush Green Hospitals. Acute Anterior Poliomyelitis Of the cases notified four developed paralytic symptoms and of these two unfortunately died. diphtheria 1 am happy to record that only one case of diphtheria was confirmed in Barking luring the year and that the patient recovered. |
fb614af2-dd95-4635-a461-f03ab7e13d34 | Page 29 I must, however, record a note of warning once again. Diphtheria is like a wild beast which is prevented from rampaging by a strong chain, represented by immunisation. The beast is potentially as strong as ever and will break out the moment it finds the chain weak enough. Weakness can be caused by complacency and indifference and we must ensure that the public are ever-reminded of the dangers of diphtheria and the wonderful insurance given by immunisation. In Barking the response to diphtheria immunisation remains satisfactory as shown by the following figures which give the percentages of children, in various age groups, who had been immunised at the end of the year:— 0—5 years 58.8% 5—15 „ 87.2% 0—15 „ 76.0% More detailed figures are given in the Table on page 36. |
69d1b72b-3efb-4c4e-9ec9-842ee9fe3cf0 | Smallpox For many years cases of smallpox in this country have been comparatively few and in Barking we have not had a case for nearly 20 years. We were reminded during the year, however, that modern traransport has brought us uncomfortably close to reservoirs of infection in far-off parts of the world in that outbreaks of the disease were started in various parts of the Country by travellers who had contracted particularly virulent forms of the disease in Asiatic countries. Fortunately, Barking was not involved in these outbreaks, but they did prove an unpleasant reminder that we still have to be vigilant, the more so because a generation has grown up to whom the honors of smallpox are unknown. Tuberculosis Much still remains to be done to curb this disease and in the article dealing with the Wastage of Human Life, I have outlined some of the preventive measures which are at our disposal. The following table shows the number of cases added to our Register during the year. |
bdcc6984-8d94-48a0-b168-ef959c4a51c6 | Page 30 NOTIFICATION OF TUBERCULOSIS New Cases Notified Pulmonary Non-Pulmonary TOTAL M. F. M. F. Under 1 year — — — — — 1 to 5 years 7 2 1 3 13 5 to 15 years 2 5 2 — 9 16 to 25 years 19 20 2 — 41 26 to 35 years 18 23 1 1 43 36 to 45 years 9 4 1 1 15 46 to 55 years 2 — — — 2 56 to 65 years 5 2 — — 7 65 years and upwards — 2 — — 2 Totals 62 58 7 5 132 A total of 89 cases were removed from the Register during the year, giving a net increase of 43. |
37b7edc3-e75e-47b8-aeae-638f1e066d8f | Page 31 GENERAL STATISTICS, 1950 Area (in acres) 4,174 Population (1931 Census) 51,277 Population (June, 1950) (Registrar-General's Estimate) 79,260 EXTRACT FROM VITAL STATISTICS, 1950 BIRTHS Live Births:— Total Males Females Legitimate 1,158 598 560 Illegitimate 31 14 17 Totals 1,189 612 577 Still-Births:— Legitimate 23 11 12 Illegitimate 3 2 1 Totals 26 13 13 Live and Still-Births 1,215 625 590 Birth Rate per 1,000 of Estimated Population 15.3. Birth Rate adjusted by Comparability Factor of 0.96 = 14.69. Still-Birth rate per 1,000 (Live and Still) Births 21.4. |
80b4d107-5f09-4a95-9ac7-2b8a16d334a9 | DEATHS Total Males Females Deaths in 1949 667 351 36 Death Rate per 1,000 Estimated Population 8.42. Death Rate adjusted by Comparability Factor of 1.34 = 11.28. Maternal Mortality:— No. of Deaths 1 Rate per 1,000 total (Live and Still) Births 0.82 Page 32 Infant Mortality:— Death Rates of Infants under one year of age:— All Infants, per 1,000 Live Births 27.0 Legitimate Infants per 1,000 Legitimate Live Births 26.8 Neo-natal Mortality:— Death Rate of Infants under one month of age per 1,000 Live Births 16.7 TABLE I DEATHS (NET) Causes and Totals Causes of Death Total Tuberculosis, respiratory 32 Tuberculosis, |
02ef7d06-6d30-48fe-b50c-0f22a346da9b | other 1 Syphilitic Disease 4 Diphtheria — Whooping Cough 1 Meningococcal Infections — Acute Poliomyelitis 2 Measles — Other Infective and Parasitic Diseases — Malignant Neoplasm, Stomach 15 Malignant neoplasm, Lung, Bronchus 26 Malignant Neoplasm, Breast 15 Malignant Neoplasm, Uterus 1 Other Malignant and Lymphatic Neoplasms 72 Leukaemia, Aleukaemia 1 Diabetes 1 Vascular Lesions of Nervous System 60 Coronary Disease, Angina 72 Hypertension with Heart Disease 39 Other Heart Disease 95 Other Circulatory Disease 21 Influenza 3 Pneumonia 29 Bronchitis 48 Other Diseases of Respiratory System 4 Ulcer of Stomach and Duodenum 11 Gastritis, |
96366539-f0d6-4ddb-97d4-baec5a44f30f | Enteritis and Diarrhoea 5 Nephritis and Nephrosis 8 Hyperplasia of Prostate 4 Pregnancy, Childbirth, Abortion 1 Congenital Malformations 5 Other Defined and Ill-defined Diseases 66 Motor Vehicle Accidents 6 All Other Accidents 12 Suicide 7 Homicide and Operations of War — T otal 667 Page 33 TABLE II INFANTILE MORTALITY—1950 0—1 mth. 1—3 mths. 3—6 mths. 6—9 mths. 9—12 mths. |
ac476c13-9983-4f13-b382-4129511b6e7b | Total under 1 year Accident — 2 — — — 2 Atelectasis 2 — — — — 2 Congenital Malformations 3 — 1 — — 4 Gastro-enteritis — — 2 2 — 4 Haemolytic Disease 2 — — — — 2 Pneumonia of Newborn 2 — — — — 2 Broncho-pneumonia — — 2 — — 2 Lobar Pneumonia — 1 — — — 1 Prematurity 10 — — — — 10 Pyaemia 1 — — — — 1 Tubercular Meningitis — — — 1 — 1 Whooping Cough — — 1 — — 1 Totals 20 3 6 3 32 TABLE III NEO-NATAL MORTALITY—1950 Under 1 day 1—7 days 1—2 weeks 2—3 weeks 3—4 weeks Total under 1 mth. |
d6fc50cf-e35d-48f2-ae88-c33faae6fba2 | [/] Atelectasis 2 — — — — 2 Congenital Malformations 1 1 1 — — 3 Haemolytic Disease — 2 — — — 2 Pneumonia of Newborn — 1 1 — — 2 Prematurity 6 4 — — — 10 Pyaemia — 1 — — — 1 Totals 9 9 2 — — 20 Page 34 TABLE IV COMPARATIVE INFANT MORTALITY RATES Year Barking County Boroughs and Great Towns, including London England and Wales 1926 59 73 70 1927 66.1 71 69 1928 63.3 70 65 1929 53.4 79 74 1930 61.3 64 60 1931 64.4 71 66 1932 53.4 69 65 1933 55. |
cad56183-aebe-40ce-ad16-2ab66f172a49 | 6 67 64 1934 56.7 63 59 1935 52.2 62 57 1936 56.07 63 59 1937 53.8 62 58 1938 39.5 57 53 1939 33.91 53 50 1940 32.98 61 56 1941 36.3 71 60 1942 35.68 59 49 1943 37.2 58 49 1944 28.35 52 46 1945 38.56 54 46 1946 32.79 46 43 1947 31.35 47 41 1948 20.53 39 34 1949 24.8 37 32 1950 27.0 33.8 29. |
ad9d1d33-f50f-485e-8648-31d686936fa0 | 8 Page 35 Page 36 DIPHTHERIA IMMUNISATION IN RELATION TO CHILD POPULATION Number of children at 31st December, 1950, who had completed a course of Immunisation at any time before that date (i.e. at any time since 1st January, 1936.) Age at 31.12.50 Under 1 year 1 year 2 years 3 years 4 years 5-9 years | 10-14 years Total i.e. Bom in Year 1950 1949 1948 1947 1946 1941/45 1936/40 Under 15 Number immunised 100 737 930 1,290 1,143 4,829 4,672 13,701 Estimated mid-year child population 1950 Children under 5 7,147 Children 5-14 10, |
45e5e5e5-30ab-43d4-aa44-8648b7369a52 | 880 ANTE-NATAL CLINICS Number of Sessions 851 Number of patients attending for first time 1,789 Total number of patients 4,063 Total number of attendances 14,877 POST-NATAL CLINIC Number of Sessions 108 Number of patients attending for first time 1,108 Total number of patients 1,206 Total number of attendances 1,483 GYNAECOLOGICAL CLINIC Number of Sessions 101 Number of patients attending for first time 512 Total number of patients 787 Total number of attendances 1,564 INFANT WELFARE CLINICS Number of Sessions 767 Total umber of children 10,341 Number of children—First Attendances— Under 1 year 1,133 Over year 185 Number of Attendances of children— Under 1 year 20,490 Over 1 year 14,984 DENTAL SERVICE Mothers and School Toddlers Children Total Patients treated 1,590 6,155 7, |
e654c513-6785-43c2-9e80-e1dea594cdf8 | 745 Attendances 3,831 14,463 18,294 Extractions 1,716 5,330 7,046 Anaesthetics—General 660 2,817 3,477 Fillings 1,225 6,474 7,699 Other Operations 2,344 8,142 10,486 Dentures supplied 186 37 223 Sessions (equivalent) 385 1,374 1,759 Page 37 EAR, NOSE AND THROAT SERVICE Adults— Mothers and Public School Toddlers Scheme Children Total Attendances 201 34 856 1, |
0049ef97-57ca-4a1a-a1ff-1a175c96e272 | 091 Cases which received operative treatment 67 - 320 387 Cases which received other forms of treatment 26 10 107 143 ORTHOPAEDIC CLINIC Adults— Mothers and Public School Toddlers Scheme Children Total Primary examination by Surgeon 66 115 92 273 Re-examination by Surgeon 14 38 57 109 New cases treated 504 466 478 1,448 Total Attendances for treatment 4,052 11,441 5,618 21,111 TREATMENT OF DEFECTIVE VISION Adults— Mothers and Public School Toddlers Scheme Children Total Errors of Refraction, etc. requiring treatment 114 175 1,076 1,36s Spectacles prescribed 76 138 652 866 SQUINT TRAINING Sessions 505 Children attended 177 Attendances 2, |
e8911a2c-607e-4565-b3ff-1b12d2e65c52 | 521 Discharged—cured 55 SKIN CLINIC Consultations Treatments Sessions 51 153 Attendances:— School Children 354 2,622 Mothers and Toddlers 295 490 Other categories (including Public Adult Scheme) 203 576 Page 38 ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SERVICES SANITARY CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE AREA RAINFALL The rainfall for the year 1950 was 21.33 inches as compared with 19.94 inches for the previous year—rain fell on no less than 273 days in the year 1950. WATER SUPPLY The building of new dwellings at Longbridge Road has necessitated an extension of the mains of a total length of 716 yards. Samples were taken from the domestic supplies and submitted monthly for bacteriological examination and quarterly for chemical examination. All the samples submitted were found to be pure and wholesome. |
0c9e5bb3-4e72-44c7-a7e5-28fa3f27c6eb | Until there is some substantial reduction in the temporary hardness of the water supplied to the Borough by the South-East Essex Water Works, Co., Ltd., I must continue to call attention to this disability. The increased cost of laundering and bathing in the home due to the hardness is a deterrent to the practice of personal hygiene. In certain factory premises there are eight wells. In two instances these wells are used to supply water for drinking purposes. Samples drawn from such supplies have been examined during the year and found to be satisfactory. DRAINAGE AND SEWERAGE The drainage of the Borough continues to be discharged to the Northern Outfall Works of the London County Council. RIVERS AND STREAMS Our principal water-courses are the Rivers Thames and Roding, with two subsidiaries known as the Mayesbrook and Loxford Water. The Thames and Roding continued to cause nuisance during the summer months owing to the serious contamination of the water from sewage effluents and the lack of upland rain-water. |
41a97be8-b576-4f36-b20a-d363c68a69cc | The London County Council is going forward with its expansion of the outfall works at Barking and Crossness which will in time, we hope, bring an urgent improvement. Page 39 Changes in the line of flow and the deepening of both the Mayesbrook and Loxford Water are contemplated by plans arising from the proposals of the Ilford Corporation and the River Roding Catchment Board. The Council has considered these changes carefully in order to secure local improvement, to prevent any risk of flooding. It is expected that the works intended will add to the amenities of the Borough. PUBLIC CLEANSING AND REFUSE DISPOSAL A stage has been reached in the public cleansing service where important and far-reaching decisions affecting the future disposal of refuse are being taken. It is of primary importance to public health that refuse is stored, collected and disposed of so as not to become a danger. It is also important that the level of much of the low-lying land in the Borough should be raised. |
487c444c-3001-4b28-8ea6-b07458b912bb | It is with satisfaction, therefore, that I record the proposal to concentrate the refuse disposal of the adjacent Borough of Ilford and he County Borough of East Ham with our own on an approved site adjoining the Borough boundary in the south-east corner. Tipping on a large scale justifies the use of more mechanical equipment which should result in less offensive work for employees and an improved tip. During the year, 71,673 yards of refuse were collected, with an average weight of 5.56 cwts. per yard, totalling approximately 19,500 tons. This refuse was disposed of by tipping at the Corporation tip. Refuse from outside the Borough, 18,600 tons in weight, was also tipped here. The provisions of the Essex County Council Act, 1933, with regard to tips are in operation. |
213407c0-8980-4209-b910-3dbbf705d79e | DUSTBIN OWNERSHIP BY THE LOCAL AUTHORITY Since the Barking Corporation Act of 1933 came into force, every effort has been made to establish the use of a standard type of dustbin. The war shortage prevented the full development of the scheme. Action is now taken to secure the provision of dustbins in accordance with Section 75 (3) of the Public Health Act, 1936. Owner/occupiers found this scheme attractive until 5s. per annum was introduced as a maintenance charge. The upset caused is, however, fading away and it is expected that progress will continue steadily until the Council is supplying the whole of the privately-owned houses in the district upon an annual charge basis. Page 40 At an early date, however, I feel new legislation is required to settle once and for all whether the charge for the provision of dustbins is one for the local authority, the owner or the occupier. |
0be5989b-27c1-41e4-9c51-ddf71d57f0fe | At the end of the year dustbins were being maintained and supplied at 5,698 premises. SECONDARY STREETS It was not possible to make any progress with the paving, draining and lighting of the rear access passages to the terrace houses in the older pan of the town, but the schedule of work necessary is being maintained. ERADICATION OF BED BUGS The public continues to be aware of the Corporation's available services and, where cases of infestation were brought to the notice of the Department, appropriate action was taken. During the year 15 privatelyowned properties and 43 properties under the control of the Corporation were treated with insecticide containing D.D.T. It is pleasing to record a general improvement in the standard of cleanliness, notwithstanding the continued dual occupation of so many houses. This, I feel, is largely due to the advance in the standard of sanitary facilities in the houses built between the wars and supports the present demand for the provision of baths, wash-hand basins and laundering facilities easily accessible. |
4c542d58-277c-4a67-9c29-500408a088fa | We still have our problem families, but these are the result of other social defects. FLY NUISANCE The inclemency of the weather during the summer months was not conducive to the breeding of flies in such large numbers as in the previous year. The spray treatment of piggeries, stables, refuse tips and vacant lands was continued during the season and this contributed largely to the control of this nuisance. The abolition of the kitchen waste receptacle also contributed to this improvement. PREVENTION OF DAMAGE BY PESTS ACT, 1949 This Act came into force on the 31st March, 1950, and repeals the Rates and Mice Destruction Act, 1919. Page 41 Section 3 requires the occupier of any land, other than agricultural land, to give notice in writing to the local authority if it comes to his knowledge that rats or mice are living on or resorting to the land in substantial numbers and provides a penalty for failure to give such notice. |
eac823c1-d97c-4226-a64f-0872f569a593 | The Act considerably extends the powers formerly held by the local authority for the enforcement of notices served in respect of rats and mice infestation. RODENT CONTROL IN SEWERS The bi-annual treatment of sewers was carried out during the months of May and November and, in addition, test-baiting of 70 manholes throughout the newer parts of the district took place in April and only evidence of minor infestation was found. The results of the two main treatments were satisfactory, but once again evidence of heavy infestation was found in areas in the older parts of the district. The following table shows the degree of infestation:— May November Number of manholes baited 422 422 Number showing prebait take 166 177 Number showing complete prebait take 61 128 In November a special check was made after poison bait was laid, the result being as follows:— Number showing poison bait take - 172 Number showing complete poison bait take - 9 SURFACE INFESTATION. |
9c9135dc-77fa-4c82-b2c5-be93863f1729 | The Corporation's rodent operative carried out treatments at factories, business premises, private dwellings and local authority properties involving some 4,000 visits. The charge for this service to factories and business premises remains at the rate of 4s. 3d. per hour. The following is a copy of the Report furnished to the Ministry of Agriculture for the period April to December, 1950:— Page 42 1. PREVALENCE OF RATS AND MICE. Type of Property No. of properties in Area in which infestation was found Analysis of Column 4. |
4fbc255f-dcf8-42b8-a393-8097ea4d1e51 | Number infested by (0 Total (2) Notified by Occupier (3) Otherwise discovered (4) Total RATS MICE Only Major Minor Local Authority's property 29 2 3 5 2 1 2 Dwelling houses 20,162 220 188 408 - 335 73 Business premises 1,711 23 45 68 — 51 17 Totals 21,902 245 236 481 2 387 92 2. MEASURES OF CONTROL BY CORPORATION. Type of Property No. of properties inspected No. of inspections made No. of notices served under Section 4 No. |
2193ebc7-6cd3-4df4-95ba-a6c02ead7ec3 | of treatments carried out by arrangement with Occupier Under Section 5 Treatment Works Rats Mice only Rats Mice only Local Authoritie's Property 5 14 - - 25 2 - - Dwelling House 408 918 - - 335 73 - - Business Premises 68 146 — — 153 30 — — Totals 481 1,078 — — 513 105 — — Unclassied Properties:—Properties which do not appropriately fall under other classifications are included under business premises. The foregoing table shows figures for only nine months of the year during which the new Act was operative. It is therefore necessary to give the following figures for the period January to March during which the Rats and Mice Destruction Act, 1939, remained in force. Page 43 Treatments Carried Out Rats Mice Local Authority's property 7 4 Dwelling houses 117 23 Business premises 58 9 182 36 ATMOSPHERIC POLLUTION. |
cce100eb-589a-4c91-b320-2273d0e33ca2 | It is interesting to compare the pollution tables for the years 1949 and 1950 because the comparison shows so clearly the effect of the domestic fire upon the air we breathe. In 1950 June was relatively cold and the pollution index went up by 5 points, whereas October was mild and free from fog by comparison with 1949 and the pollution index dropped from 44 to 18. It is still not recognised fully that the burning of raw bituminous coal in an open fireplace is largely responsible for our atmospheric pollution. Not only is the air polluted but the vital rays of the sun are excluded, and soil is rendered so acid as to become infertile. Technical progress in the prevention of smoke pollution has been vast but cannot be implemented unless and until proper burning appliances are used and there is adequate supplies of smokeless fuel with storage capacity available at the home. The Council in its new dwellings has fitted new and approved appliances. |
2092d102-2da2-484c-ac74-8651bac432eb | The storage space at Longbridge Road flats is designed to give capacity for 2 cwts. of smokeless fuel, but householders are prevented from making the best use of these facilities because of the refusal of the National Board to deliver in less quantities than 5 cwts. Another penalty inflicted upon the householder who wishes to reduce smoke emission is one of cost. So long as the price of coke is higher than that of coal, this must act as a deterrent. In my report for the year 1949 I referred in some detail to other factors contributing to our local pollution. The erection of the new boiler plant at our largest wood-burning factory is nearing completion after many unavoidable delays, and the completion of the additional station at the Barking Generating Station is making good progress. |
01615863-8d2d-4f85-b86f-d303eb561337 | When comparing the Barking pollution figures with other towns, regard must be had to the fact that in the Borough are situated the largest Page 44 Page 45 MEASUREMENTS OF ATMOSPHERIC POLUTION- 1949-1950 Monthly deposit in tons per square mile and Sulphur Dioxide (Standard Measurement) by the Lead Peroxide method in milligrams of SO3 per day per 1,000 sq. C.M. MONTH BARKING PARK GREATFIELDS PARK PARSLOES PARK 1949 1950 1949 1950 1949 1950 Total Solids Sulphur Dioxide Total Solids Sulphur Dioxide Total Solids Sulphur Dioxide Total Solids Sulphur Dioxide Total Solids Sulphur Dioxide Total Solids Sulphur Dioxide JANUARY 20.94 39.5 20.57 22.8 35.55 46.9 28.27 28.5 29. |
4b8cc610-f50c-4b4a-b6dc-541be29bb9d9 | 65 46.4 21.18 30.1 FEBRUARY 19.44 31.9 24.26 27.0 28.68 41.7 43.80 39.9 28.23 39.2 36.14 34.4 MARCH 15.22 27.5 18.17 20.7 24.44 23.1 26.38 27.8 21.01 26.4 24.55 27.7 APRIL 24.16 17.6 23.89 17.7 27.37 22.9 29.29 23.1 28.99 24.1 20.98 23.9 MAY 25.08 12.2 16.02 4.2 26.93 16.9 11.83 10.0 26.89 15.6 10.20 14. |
aad219ff-2970-438e-91c6-040510990f7d | 1 JUNE 17.25 9.4 23.37 10.0 21.56 15.0 18.33 17.2 19.88 12.7 14.50 15.8 JULY 27.89 6.6 21.83 6.2 26.11 9.6 26.07 16.8 22.66 7.3 25.55 14.3 AUGUST 23.78 8.9 29.87 10.7 32.34 11.2 21.25 19.8 24.97 9.6 26.62 15.3 SEPTEMBER 20.94 6.7 19.23 15.6 25.46 9.0 33.10 23.6 26.65 8.3 20.91 25.8 OCTOBER 44.35 18. |
a936ddae-13e1-46fd-a682-8c36e41b4644 | 4 18.89 12.0 51.81 23.8 23.41 14.8 47.90 24.5 19.88 10.6 NOVEMBER 21.42 13 . 5 37.44 21.4 33.98 25.9 43.02 23.1 32.98 29.2 34.63 18.5 DECEMBER 19.44 27.1 25.60 19.1 29.23 40.7 29.64 22.5 24.83 35.7 30.69 19.1 Averages 23.33 23.26 j 30.29 28.70 27.89 23.82 Wind Rose demonstrating Wind Frequency for 1949. electricity generating station in Europe and the largest gas-producing works in the world. |
4e1a0493-a99e-4ec7-a688-96a2e1222a93 | Finally, I want to again emphasise that the old idea that a smoking chimney symbolises prosperity has long been debunked On the contrary, it demonstrates waste of valuable energy, which is deplorable when one considers the value of coal in our national economy. The wind-roses shown for 1949 and 1950 demonstrate graphically the wind frequency in the Borough. In the roses 1/32 inch on each line represents one day's wind. The figures at each point give the number of of days the wind was blowing from each point of the compass. It will be seen that approximately half of each year the wind was blowing from approximately the South-West and therefore the maximum nuisance would arise to the North-East of any point of atmospheric pollution. Page 46 Wind Rose demonstrating Wind Frequency for 1950. NOXIOS FUME EMISSIONS The year has been one of trouble. Scientific advance in the production of new materials bring problems of manufacture. |
e30f0988-5c75-4e3f-b09c-c0f518bb3da2 | The shortage of raw materials also provides an opportunity for recovery from salvaged articles of such essentials. It is to be expected, therefore, that a district situated on the east of Greater London should be faced with such problems. We have within the Borough boundaries no less than 21 premises of a type likely to produce noxious emissions. Some are small in size but others are substantial. They are engaged in a variety of manufactures from the production of selective weed-killers and sausage skins to asbestos goods. We have special troubles arising from the recovery of non-ferrous metals. Page 47 It will be of interest to record here some typical results of analyses of deposit gauges situated near one such factory premises. Our attention was called to the contamination by resident allotment occupiers. Readings from deposit gauge placed in an allotment adjacent to the factory. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. |
246be327-7ab1-4b05-a715-f6aa3676b241 | Lead (milligrams) 2.0 3.7 6.18 10.0 Zinc (milligrams) 48.5 76.8 99.20 145.0 Readings from control deposit gauge placed on an allotment 400 yards west of the factory. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Lead (milligrams) 0.2 0.6 0.46 1.80 Zinc (milligrams) 1.6 3.2 2.40 10.50 At the end of the year the problem remained unresolved owing to the need for a licence to erect necessary new buildings. Upon another occasion it was necessary to submit a grape-vine for examination as to the presence of asbestos fibre, which fortunately was not substantiated. CHEMICAL WORKS I made reference in my report for the year 1949 to the many complaints received with regard to emissions from these premises. |
a2ed44e3-76b2-422c-8eaa-face79090b74 | The Council discussed the matter with the Board of Trade with a view to the allocation of a distribution of industry certificate in order to assist in resiting the works. At the end of the year, however, the position remained unaltered. NOISE NUISANCE In no aspect of environmental health does lack of town planning show more than when dealing with noise nuisance. The relation of factory siting, commercial and shop premises and main traffic lines, whether rail or motor, become more and more important with the scientific developments in our civilised life. I am being forced to the conclusion that it will soon be necessary to plan as a feature "quiet streets or estates." Page 48 NATIONAL ASSISTANCE ACT, 1948. Aged and Infirm Persons Action under Section 47 of this Act was taken in March in respect of a lady who was considered to be aged, infirm, and living in insanitary conditions and unable to devote to herself and not receiving from other persons proper care and attention. |
cd3db9f2-f5b7-44f5-8e63-3fd0eb0d02a1 | The Magistrates, being satisfied that the circumstances of the case were proved, ordered her compulsory removal to hospital for a period of three months. The aged person was duly removed, and it has since transpired that she is not likely ever to be able to take care of herself and will therefore remain under hospital supervision for the remainder of her days. Buriai. or Cremation of the Dead Sub section 1 of Section 50 of the Act provides as follows:— It shall be the duty of every authority to which this sub-section applies to cause to be buried or cremated the body of any person who has died 0r been found dead in their area, in any case where it appears to the authority that no suitable arrangements for the disposal of the body have been or are being made otherwise than by the authority. During the year the bodies of seven deceased persons were disposed of by burial. ESSEX COUNTY COUNCIL ACT, 1933. |
a2ecc3d1-d92e-42b4-96f6-5b8a600e7142 | PART IV Massage and Special Treatment Establishments There are now four holders of Licences to carry out massage and special treatment as defined in the Act. Inspections of their premises have from time to time been made to ensure compliance with the bye-laws. SWIMMING BATHS AND POOLS East Street Bath—This bath was used by 65,406 bathers during the open season of 22 weeks. Page 49 Of this number 14,000 were children. Open Air Pool.—The pool was used by 76,162 bathers. I can only repeat my earnest hope that the new swimming bath at Mayesbrook, with provision for Turkish and vapour baths, will become an accomplished fact within the measurable future. Samples of swimming bath water were taken as follows:— Open Air Pool 4 East Street Bath 17 South East Essex County Technical College 7 All these samples were found to be satisfactory. FACTORIES ACT, 1937. |
a151a5ab-b06a-408e-a716-e79a24ff9810 | The following statistics show the results of the activities of the Sanitary Inspectors in the administration of this Act. 1.—Inspections for purposes of provisions as to health. Premises Number on Register Number of Inspections Written notices Occupiers prosecuted (i) Factories in which Sections 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 are to be enforced by Local Authorities 54 119 8 Nil (ii) Factories not included in (i) in which Section 7 is enforced by the Local Authority 235 413 77 Nil (iii) Other Premises in which Section 7 is enforced by the Local Authority (excluding outworkers' premises) 8 5 Nil Nil Total 297 537 85 Nil Page 50 2.—Cases in which Defects were found. Particulars Number of cases in which defects were found Number of cases in which prosecutions were instituted Found Remedied Referred To H.M. Inspector By H.M. |
8a9ee0c1-f514-46d1-9db4-f9ee2edf4476 | Inspector Warn of cleanliness (S.1) 12 10 - 1 - 1 Overcrowding (S.2) — — — — — Unreasonable temperature (S.3) - - - - - 1 Inadequate ventilation (S.4) - - — — — Ineffective drainage of floors (S.6) - - - - - Sanitary Conveniences (S.7) (a) Insufficient l6 12 — — — (b) Unsuitable or defective 78 68 — 1 — (c) Not separate for sexes - — — — — Other offences against the Act (not including offences relating to Outwork) - - - - - Total 106 90 — 2 — OUTWORK Section 110: Number of outworkers in August List required by Section 110 (l) (c) 161 Nature of work carried out by outworkers:— Making of wearing apparel 123 Cleaning and washing of wearing apparel — Umbrellas, etc. |
58994861-6477-41dc-8293-50145fad1760 | 2 The making of boxes or other receptacles or parts thereof made wholly or partially of paper 13 Brush making — Cosaques, Christmas Crackers, Christmas Stockings, etc. 17 Artificial flowers 1 Confectionery Novelties 2 Eiderdown Covers — Stuffed Toys 2 Life-saving Equipment Nil Carding, etc., of Buttons, etc. 1 Number of cases of default in sending in lists to the Council Nil Prosecutions for default in sending in lists to the Council Nil Page 51 Section 111: Number of visits to outworkers 514 Number of instances of work in unwholesome premises Nil Number of notices served Nil Number of prosecutions in respect of outworkers' premises Nil The number of outworkers in the August List decreased by 75. This does not mean that there are less outworkers in the district but indicates that this type of work is seasonal. The actual number of seasonal outworkers is 250. |
cddb0ffd-58d9-4b93-b293-14a478b1f308 | SANITARY INSPECTION OF THE AREA In the built-up industrial area into which Barking has developed there is variety of interest and many matters requiring the attention of your officers. Foremost is the maintenance of a reasonable standard of fitness in the homes of the residents. This will continue to remain difficult whilst owners have to contend with the problem of higher repair costs and low rents. There is, of course, the associated problem of the decayed and obsolescent cottage below standard in its structural condition and amenities. Barking has a substantial number of such dwellings remaining in occupation notwithstanding the Council's pre-war clearance activities. It is little satisfaction to tenants to say that amenities cannot be improved. For this reason you are faced with the claims of some 700 families applying for new accommodation although at present in occupation of a house adequate in other respects. The year under review has been progressive in connection with the environmental health services and an attempt is made in this report to focus attention on matters dealt with. |
6ebb9166-a1a1-4361-9fdc-3ac6eb6ce61b | There were less complaints than in 1949, and the number dealt with during the year was 1,996. These, together with routine inspections, resulted in the service of 1,753 Preliminary Notices and 781 Statutory Notices in respect of housing defects under the Public Health and Housing Acts, 608 Preliminary Notices and 1 Statutory Notice under other Acts, Bye Laws and Regulations. At the end of the year there were 212 Statutory Notices outstanding. During the year work had been completed on 919 Preliminary Notices and 859 Statutory Notices issued under the Public Health and Housing Acts, including 290 outstanding from the previous year. All the Notices issued under other Acts and Bye Laws were completed in 1950. The following statistical tables outline the work of the Sanitary Inspectors in connection with their duties under the various Acts. Page 52 Page 53 SANITATION, HOUSING, SHOPS ACTS, ETC. |
234c040c-6a07-44b9-b496-1dea3d8fa948 | 1949 1950 Visits ReVisits Total Visits ReVisits Total - — 2,187 — Complaints received — - 1,996 — Visits 1. Inspection of Dwelling-houses Visits 3,185 6.321 9,506 — Under Public Health or Housing Acts 4.245 4,780 9,034 — 374 - 374 — Works in progress 349 - 349 — 770 - 770 — After I.D. and Scabies 450 32 482 - 494 - 494 — Housing Investigations 1,158 - 1,158 — - - - — Clearance Areas—premises in 425 — 425 — 2. |
376d77e8-8e6c-40f0-8d11-fd00e42875a5 | Premises controlled by Bye Law & Regulations Contraventions Contraventions 67 - 67 25 Offensive Trades 105 - 105 34 27 - 27 3 Tents, Vans and Sheds 18 - 18 1 121 - 121 7 Milkshops 47 - 47 4 142 - 142 42 Hairdressers' premises 52 - 52 3 298 - 298 9 Atmospheric Pollution Investigations 367 - 367 18 6 - 6 — Massage Establishments 4 - 4 — 3. Food and Drugs Act and Shops Acts 995 - 995 200 General Inspections Food & Drugs Act, 1938 954 - 954 166 894 - 894 114 , „ Shops Acts 1934 & 1950 1,328 - 1, |
2a34585b-b70c-4f25-86ff-1facffece520 | 328 212 316 - 316 — Food Sampling 256 - 256 — 144 - 144 — Milk Sampling 144 - 144 — 158 - 158 — Ice-cream sampling 140 - 140 - 51 - 51 14 Bakehouses 71 - 71 18 430 - 430 70 Butchers' premises 384 - 384 44 168 - 168 35 Fishmongers 99 - 99 39 391 - 391 45 Ice-cream Vendors 340 - 340 68 62 - 62 7 Licensed premises 62 - 62 7 456 - 456 118 Restaurants, Dining Rooms and Canteens 632 - 632 111 4. |
91aaa62a-c1e9-4bcf-8607-cec10bfe4310 | Miscellaneous 21 - 21 — Aged and Infirm persons 14 - 14 - 4 - 4 - Dilapidated Buildings 1 - 1 - 235 - 235 187 Drainage Inspections 269 - 269 167 31 - 31 5 Piggeries 37 - 37 2 44 - 44 6 Public Lavatories 50 - 50 - 219 — 219 29 Prevention of Damage by Pests Act, 1949 1,078 — 1,078 — 86 - 86 - Schools 35 - 35 8 45 - 45 3 Stables 56 - 56 5 175 - 175 2 Vacant Lands and Refuse Tips 144 - 144 3 20 - 20 — Watercourses 19 - 19 - 62 - 62 — Water sampling 54 - 54 - 495 - 495 7 Other miscellaneous 628 — 628 - Total 17. |
f63a393c-6065-4833-bca8-97fc18e0a669 | 307 Total 18,836 1949 Compliance Preliminary Statutory Preliminary Statutory 1950 Compliance Preliminary Statutory Preliminary Statutory Notices 1,487 1,041 — — Dwelling houses 1,753 781 919 859 12 — 12 — Offensive Trades 26 — 26 — 1 — I — Tents, vans and sheds 1 — 1 — 6 — 6 — Milkshops 3 — 3 — 25 — 25 — Hairdressers' premises 3 — 3 — 9 — 9 — Smoke observations 18 — 18 — 8 — 8 — Bakehouses 9 — 9 — 42 — 42 — Butchers' premises 31 — 31 — 90 — 90 — Drainage inspection 167 — 167 — 22 — 22 — Fishmongers 23 — 23 — 97 — 97 — Food and Drugs Act, |
fac4a725-a710-4334-9fd1-0e3a776ed027 | 1938 113 — 113 — 31 — 31 — Ice-cream vendors 47 — 47 — 4 — 4 — Licensed premises 5 — 5 — 2 — 2 — Piggeries 2 — 2 — 5 — 5 — Public lavatories 4 — — — 70 — 70 — Shops Acts, 1934 & 1950 151 1 150 1 3 — 3 — Stables 3 — 3 — 2 — 2 — Vacant lands and refusetips 3 - 3 - Outstanding, 290. (Completed during 1950.) Outstanding, 212. |
ab3d0169-0ecd-4c30-946b-35d1a6ebbd3b | Page 55 REMEDIAL ACTION 1949 1950 Drainage Works 6 Drains relaid or repaired 9 191 Choked drains cleared 159 1 Inspection chambers constructed — 13 New covers fitted 14 26 Tests made 40 Sanitary Conveniences 4 Additional water closets fitted 19 6 Separate w.c. accommodation for sex provided — 48 New w.c. |
0f58d134-73cb-4a38-8ed8-72114feb8726 | pans fitted 49 135 Flushing apparatus repaired or renewed 114 5 Intervening vent space provided 1 7 Artificial lighting provided 4 39 Other works 17 Other Sanitary fittings 12 New sinks fitted 21 — Wash basins provided 2 35 Sink and bath waste pipes fitted 38 Other Works 317 Roofs repaired or renewed 280 376 Gutters or rain-water pipes repaired or renewed 347 40 Yards paved and drained 46 121 Chimney pots replaced and stacks repaired 97 153 Dampness remedied 120 69 Houses disinfested 58 21 External walls repointed 13 815 Window frames repaired or renewed 709 17 Stairtreads repaired 18 190 Doors and doorframes renewed or repaired 134 260 Floors renewed or repaired 204 154 Stoves renewed or repaired 123 29 Washing coppers repaired 9 478 Ceiling and wall plaster repaired 330 835 Dustbins supplied 1, |
252c11bd-e0ad-490b-8b6c-041d7f002254 | 012 12 Accumulations of rubbish cleared 14 268 Miscellaneous 203 Page 56 At the beginning of the year there were 49 properties referred for default action under the Public Health Art nuisance sections and during the current year an additional 68 were added, making a total of 117 properties. These were dealt with as follows : 102 repaired by owners. 1 legal proceedings instituted. 1 legal proceedings pending. 13 remaining outstanding and, of these, work is in progress in seven instances. In addition, works in the repair of drains, gutters and rainwater pipes were carried out by the Borough Engineer in default of the owners at five premises. RENT AND MORTGAGE INTEREST RESTRICTIONS ACT, 1920 to 1939 During the year one certificate was issued under these Acts. |
3717f846-29a8-4f98-8ffa-4bc4a4980f78 | FOOD HYGIENE In referring to this subject I want to stress that notwithstanding my zeal for keeping the wrong things out of food, I am not likely to forget the importance of putting the right things into it. In fact, I call your special attention to my statements in my Report for 1947. I want to strike a new note in this annual report, as I have dealt with structural arrangements in food preparing places and the hygiene of the trade personnel, previously. This time my theme is consumer responsibility. Our Sanitary Inspectors have improved the standard of hygiene in the premises with the co-operation of the proprietors and employees, but so far the public has not reacted sufficiently to the importance of personal hygiene in their shopping practices and often in their home. Let me instance three examples : (1) Risk of infection by dogs taken into food establishments. (2) Handling of food exposed for sale before purchase has been made. (3) Self-infection by dirty hands. |
d368cd46-18e8-4f94-b66c-34f430bd7912 | Page 57 With regard to this business of dirty hands, I am reminded of a bakery in my experience, which decided to wrap its bread but discontinued the practice because the paper became so dirty. I am thankful for the large increase in the sale of pre-packed foods and whole-heartedly in favour of wrapping, particularly of ice-cream and bread. The achievement of perfection is not easy and in this matter of food hygiene will not be obtained easily. The motto for all of us should be clean habits, clean clothes, clean working conditions, and too great an emphasis cannot be laid upon the necessity for clean hands. To focus attention upon these essentials a food exhibition with practical demonstrations assisted with films and lectures was held in February. Whilst it did not receive such full public support as it deserved, it was attended by 1,668 persons, including 600 school-leavers. |
af5aba56-d4a8-4790-9a16-606d0396201a | FOOD POISONING During the year a total of 26 cases were notified, but in no case was it possible to isolate a specific causative organism. MEAT DELIVERY This was the subject of reports in the local Press, when the methods received adverse criticism. The Council interviewed the executive of the Meat Transport Organisation and heard of the practical difficulties. There were improvements later, and complaints have not continued. SAMPLING It is worth recording here certain observations made by your Borough Analyst—Dr. J. Hubert Hamence, in a paper read upon "Adulteration and its Control." Speaking of adulteration, he said the Society of Public Analysts adopts the following definition: Page 58 "(A) In the case of food and drink : (1) "If it contain any ingredient which may render such article injurious to the health of the consumer. |
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