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
Hackney 1916
Report on the sanitary condition of the Hackney District for the year 1916
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47
For convenience I add here a table showing at a glance the
number of deaths due to the several causes mentioned, both under
one year and from one to five yrars.
Table of special causes of deaths in children under one year of age and from one to five years of age, during 1914, in the Borough of Hackney.
| Causes of deaths. | Under one year. | One and under five years. | Total under five years. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Premature births | 81 | – | 81 |
| Congenital defects | 29 | — | 29 |
| Atrophy, debility and marasmus | 54 | 6 | 60 |
| Convulsions | 19 | 2 | 21 |
| Diarrhoeal diseases | 109 | 20 | 129 |
| Measles | 10 | 83 | 99 |
| Whooping cough | 24 | 24 | 48 |
| Bronchitis | 26 | 7 | 33 |
| Pneumonia | 54 | 64 | 118 |
| 412 | 206 | 618 |
Leaving out of account the maternal mortality, and taking the
year 1914 as an average year, there is an annual loss of infant life
before birth of 870, and after birth up to five years of age, 618,
making a total annual loss of 1,488 infant lives.
The facts above given will enable the Committee to realize the
extent of the annual loss of maternal and infant life in the Borough ;
but it must also be remembered that the birth-rate in the Borough
is progressively declining. In the year 1904 the birth-rate was 27.9
per 1,000 ; in the year 1915, the rate had declined to 21.5 per 1,000
of the population. This is equal to a decline of over 1,400 births
per annum. These facts will, I am sure, convince the Committee
of the pressing necessity for the immediate institution of a
Maternal and Infant Welfare Scheme in the Borough.