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
Merton and Morden 1943
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Merton & Morden]
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proved of great assistance in carrying out more complicated
investigations such as material from suspected food poisoning
and isolation of the typhoid dysenteriæ group in food or fæces.
The following examinations were made during the years under review:—
| Examinations. | No. performed. | Positive result. |
|---|---|---|
| Swabs for diphtheria bacilli | 306 | 2 |
| Sputum for tubercle bacilli | 88 | 6 |
| Blood for Widal test | — | — |
| Fasces | 57 | 8 |
| Swabs for Meningococci | 3 |
AMBULANCE FACILITIES.
Infectious Cases. For the removal of infectious cases two
ambulances are provided by the Wandle Valley Joint Hospital
Board for use within its administrative area including this
district. No difficulties have been experienced in securing the
prompt removal of any infectious case.
Non-Infectious Cases. For the removal of non-infectious
and maternity cases, the district council provides one ambulance.
This vehicle will accommodate two stretcher cases and
two sitting cases. It used to be housed at the Fire Station in
Kingston Road, but on the formation of the National Fire
Service it was handed over to the Civil Defence to be manned
by their personnel and a garage has been built at the Morden
Recreation Depot, where it has been kept since. Authority has
now been given for the use of Civil Defence Ambulances and
Ambulance cars for ordinary civilian cases. This should relieve
the ordinary Ambulance Service, which with the increasingly
large number of calls and the increased distances, owing to the
transference of so many of the London Hospitals to the Home
Counties, was becoming so fully occupied that an unnecessary
number of calls were being transferred to other authorities,
under the mutual arrangements with other authorities in
operation. The authority given for the use of these sitting case
cars for maternity cases has eased the situation as a certain
proportion of cases are capable of being transported by motor
car and do not demand the use of an ambulance. It is true
that this inevitably places a discretionary responsibility on
whoever is in charge at the ambulance station, but experience
has shown that this has worked very well. Now that the
authority for using Civil Defence vehicles is extended to the
use of two vehicles, the position should be fairly easy, especially
as we now have ex-army ambulances in place of some of the
original civil defence converted ambulances which were
damaged at the Morden Depot.
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