London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Kensington and Chelsea 1972
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Kensington & Chelsea Borough]
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42
DISINFECTING STATION AND MEDICINAL BATHS
Medicinal Baths
The following table shows the work carried out during 1972:
| DESCRIPTION | SCABIES | VERMIN | IMPETIGO | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Persons | Cleansings | Persons | Cleansings | Persons | Cleansings | |
| Adults | ||||||
| Kensington & Chelsea | 85 | 138 | 184 | 186 | - | - |
| Other boroughs | - | — | — | — | — | — |
| Schoolchildren Kensington & Chelsea | 79 | 79 | 309 | 309 | 1 | 1 |
| Other boroughs | 12 | 12 | 136 | 136 | — | — |
| Children under five Kensington & Chelsea | 11 | 19 | 30 | 30 | - | - |
| Other boroughs | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TOTALS | 187 | 248 | 659 | 661 | 1 | 1 |
In addition to the cleansing of persons referred to above, the number of articles
disinfested at the medicinal baths during the year numbered 131.
Disinfection and Disinfestation
A summary of the routine work carried out in 1972 by the disinfecting staff is shown in the following table:
| Houses disinfected after infectious disease | 36 (83 rooms) |
| Houses disinfected after vermin | 352 (1173 rooms) |
| Total weight of bedding, etc., dealt with | 1¾ tons |
Certain foreign countries prohibit the import of parcels of clothing, unless
accompanied by a certificate that the articles have been disinfected. The Council afford
facilities to persons desirous of sending clothing abroad and, for this service, a standard
charge is made of 50p per parcel.
During the year twenty-five parcels of clothing were disinfected and the income
amounted to £12.50.
The following table indicates the destinations of these parcels:
| Destination | No. of parcels |
|---|---|
| Argentina | 8 |
| East Germany | 11 |
| Spain | 6 |
| TOTAL | 25 |
Laundry Service for the Aged Incontinent
The Council have no direct authority to provide a laundry service but under Section
84 of the Public Health Act, 1936, they are empowered to cause any article in a house to be
cleansed, disinfected or destroyed if it is in such a condition as to be a danger to health.
Fouled bed linen in cases of incontinence may be cleansed under this section.