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
Whitechapel 1871
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Whitechapel]
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5
Quarter of the previous year, the number of pauper cases of illness was
3393, including 21 of small-pox, 143 of measles, 21 of scarlet-fever, 37 of
hooping-cough, 235 of diarrhoea, 27 of fever, and 9 of erysipelas.
The number of cases of pauper illness has greatly diminished during
this Quarter. Whether this diminution is owing to the new arrangements,
whereby all the pauper patients, who are capable of leaving their homes,
are required to attend at the Workhouse, where they are seen and prescribed
for by the Medical Officers, or whether it is owing to other causes
I cannot say, but to be able to record so large a diminution as 736 sick
paupers in a Quarter is highly satisfactory.
Meteorology at Greenwich,
The returns of the Registrar-G-eneral show that the rain-fall in the
Metropolis during the Quarter has been 6.66 inches. During the corresponding
Quarter of last year, the rain-fall was only 1.29 inches. The
mean temperature of the air was 55.8°. In the corresponding Quarter of
last year, the mean temperature was 54.7°. The hottest days during the
Quarter, were Wednesday, May 24th, Thursday, May 25th, and Thursday,
June 15th, when the thermometer, in the shade, indicated respectively
77.2°, 79.5°, and 77.2°. In the corresponding Quarter of the previous
year, the highest reading of the thermometer, in the shade, was on
Wednesday, 22nd of June, when it indicated 90.2°.
The following Table, taken from the returns of the Registrar-General, shows the comparative results of the Quarter :—
LONDON.
| Aprl 8th | Aprl 15th | Aprl 22nd | Aprl 29th | Slay 6th | May 13 th | May 20th | May 27th | June 3rd | June 10th | Tune 17th | J une 24th | July 1st | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deaths from Smal lPox | 214 | 265 | 276 | 261 | 288 | 232 | 267 | 257 | 229 | 245 | 240 | 332 | 235 |
| Deaths from scarlet Fever | 37 | 40 | 27 | 30 | 29 | 35 | 28 | 28 | 25 | 34 | 17 | 24 | 16 |
| Mean Temperature of the air | 43.1° | 48.3° | 50.0° | 50.7° | 49.7° | 47.6° | 50.1° | 56.1° | 53.9° | 49.9° | 59.5° | 56.2° | 56.6 |
| Rain - fall in inches | 0.01 | 0.36 | 1.75 | 0.80 | 0.20 | 0.15 | 0.16 | 0.22 | 0.10 | 0.31 | 1.05 | 1.50 | 0.05 |
| Deaths in London | 1493 | 1722 | 1578 | 1469 | 1522 | 1341 | 1426 | 1401 | 1393 | 1437 | 1349 | 1296 | 1328 |
| Deaths in Whitechapel District | 39 | 46 | 46 | 42 | 56 | 35 | 47 | 50 | 31 | 51 | 31 | 31 | 52 |
| Deaths in ditto from Small-pox | 5 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
Water Supply.
The constant system of water supply, by the use of waste preventers
in the poorer districts, is increasing, and continues to give great satisfaction,
There are now 146 waste preventers (27 new ones having been
erected during this Quarter;, by which upwards of 850 houses are supplied.
So convinced am I of the great improvement of this mode of
supply to the poor localities over the old intermittent system, that I