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GENERAL MATTERS
BURIALS - Under Section 50 of the National Assistance Act, 1948, it is the duty
of the Council to arrange the burial of any person who has died in the district, where
it appears that there are no suitable arrangements for the disposal of the body.
During 1957, two burials were arranged in accordance with this section.
PUBLIC MORTUARY - The public mortuary is situated in the grounds of Holy Trinity
Church. The premises are out-of-date and unsuitable for post-mortem examinations or
the retention of a body for other than a very short time, so by arrangement with
Acton Borough Council and the Coroner, bodies are taken direct to or transferred to
Acton Mortuary. The Council pays a proportion of the cost of maintenance of the
Acton Mortuary.
MEDICAL EXAMINATION OP STAFF - For superannuation or other purposes 171 members
of the Council's staff were referred to the Health Department for medical examination.
HEALTH EDUCATION - Posters issued by the Central Council for Health Education
continued to be displayed on the boards formerly used by the Empire Marketing Board.
During the year, the Medical Officer of Health gave talks to several organisations
in the Borough on various aspects of the health services. Though the work of the
department is not primarily educational, the staff are fully aware of the opportunities
given by their contact with the people for drawing attention to matters bearing
on health and hygiene. Other Departments have co-operated by displaying health
educational material.
PERSONS IN NEED OF CARE AND ATTENTION - Section 47 of the National Assistance
Act, 1948, places the responsibility on the Council of taking action to secure 'the
necessary care and attention for persons who:-
(a) are suffering from grave chronic disease or, being aged, infirm or physically
incapacitated, are living in insanitary conditions and
(b) are unable to devote to themselves, and are not receiving from other
persons, proper care and attention .
Despite the growing interest of statutory and voluntary agencies in the welfare
of the aged, cases come to the notice of the Department of neglected aged persons
living in insanitary conditions. Such persons are usually most reluctant to accept
assistance or to go to hospital or institution, but fortunately, in most cases,
peaceful persuasion secures their co-operation in some degree and the necessary
action can be taken. In no case was it necessary to seek authority to apply for an
Order for compulsory removal to hospital or institution.
LAUNDRY SERVICE - One of the problems in the care of aged and sick persons in
their own homes is soiled clothing and bed linen. Where washing facilities are
poor and the persons concerned neither have nor can afford assistance, the cleansing
of clothing and bedding presents serious difficulty. In some cases, action under
Section 84 of the Public Health Act, 1936, is the only solution and the Council has
made arrangements with a laundry firm for the cleansing of articles where the Medical
Officer of Health has issued the certificates required by the Act. The number of
cases in which such action has been necessary is small, but the provision of these
facilities has met a genuine need