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
Orpington 1963
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Orpington]
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Full details of the causes of death will be found in Table II in the appendix to this report, but the following table, giving details of certain causes of death in the Urban District during the past ten years, may prove of interest:—
| Disease. | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canccr (all sites) | 108 | 134 | 131 | 131 | 158 | 172 | 159 | 169 | 155 | 167 |
| Cancer of the lung, bronchus | 25 | 23 | 34 | 33 | 38 | 48 | 33 | 43 | 47 | 40 |
| Heart and Circulatory Diseases | 320 | 262 | 264 | 284 | 328 | 348 | 321 | 382 | 384 | 388 |
| Respiratory Diseases (ex-eluding Tuberculosis | 44 | 79 | 135 | 88 | 119 | 107 | 110 | 90 | 104 | 111 |
| Tuberculosis | 5 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 4 |
| Infectious Diseases | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| Road Accidents | 8 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 8 |
| Other Accidents | 2 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 10 |
Morbidity Statistics.
The following is a summary of the weekly details received from the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance during 1963:—
| Four weeks ending. | Number of first certificates of incapacity received. |
|---|---|
| 29th January | 1,541 |
| 26th February | 1,946 |
| 26th March | 1,310 |
| 23rd April | 788 |
| 21st May | 762 |
| 18th June | 635 |
| 16th July | 630 |
| 13th August | 493 |
| 10th September | 573 |
| 8 th October | 753 |
| 5 th November | 899 |
| 3rd December | 904 |
| 31st December | 795 |
The sickness rate continued to follow the normal trend, namely,
the highest incidence of illness occurred during the early and late
parts of the year, with the lowest figures being recorded in August.
Staff Medical Examinations.
124 members or potential members of the staff were given a
medical examination during the year. 114 were examined in the previous
year.