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
St Pancras 1913
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for St. Pancras, London, Borough of]
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The same cases are classified in the next table according to their capacity for work : —
| Men. | Women. | Persons. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dead | 22 | 6 | 28 |
| Unable to work by reason of physical condition | 19 | 4 | 23 |
| Cannot get work because of physical condition | 9 | 4 | 13 |
| Cannot get work because known to be consumptive | 4 | — | 4 |
| At work, but failing in health | 9 | 1 | 10 |
| At work, and doing well* | 22 | 12 | 34 |
| Now in Infirmary or Home for Advanced Cases | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| Returned to Insurance Committee Institutions | 4 | 2 | 6 |
| Lost sight of, or not yet discharged | 28 | 14 | 42 |
| 121 | 44 | 165 | |
| * Five of these are included with hesitation. | |||
It will be seen from the above two tables that a considerable proportion of
the insured patients who have been sent away to institutions have done badly.
Of the 123 cases in which the information is complete only 47 are said at the
present time to have improved, and only 34 to be at work and doing well. It
must be remembered also that us time progresses a worsening will certainly
take place in many of the patients, and for conclusive results further inquiries
must be made at a later date. This is brought out by the fact that of the 165
cases dealt with 13 have been discharged since the end of 1913, and 48 others
during the last three months of 1913.
As some patients no doubt have been admitted to institutions who were known to be incapable of cure, the following table is added showing the results classified according as to whether the patient was treated in a London hospital on ly (Brompton, City Road, City of London, University College, St. Thomas's, or Metropolitan) or in the other institutions mentioned in the list above:—
| Treated in a London hospital only. | Treated in other institutions. | Total. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dead | 9 | 19 | 28 |
| Worse | 2 | 17 | 19 |
| No change | 3 | 26 | 29 |
| Improved | 5 | 35 | 40 |
| Thought to be cured | 2 | 5 | |
| 21 | 102 | 123 | |
| Lost sight of or not yet discharged | 42 | ||
| 165 | |||
Although many insured tuberculous persons have been treated during the
year as dispensary patients at the St. Pancras Dispensary only a few of these
have been "sanctioned" by the Insurance Committee for dispensary treatment.
The medical examination of St. Pancras insured persons for "sanatorium"
benefit has been carried out during the year by the Expert Medical Adviser
of the Insurance Committee, and not by the medical staff of the local approved
dispensary.