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4
Town Hall,
Bethnal Green, E. 2.
April, 1927.
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors
of the Metropolitan Borough of Bethnal Green.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The health statistics for 1926 are, on the whole, comparatively
satisfactory. The Death Rate was 11.6, as compared with 12.0 last
year. The graph following p. 24 will show how this compares with
previous years. The Birth Rate was 20.9 per thousand of the
population, and compares with 21.9 last year. Comparison with
previous years and a comment thereon will be found on p. 25.
The Infant Death Rate, always a sensitive index to public health
administration, was 71.1 per thousand births, as compared with 80.6
in 1925. This is the second lowest Infant Death Rate for Bethnal
Green on record. The marked decline in the Infant Death Rate of
the Borough is further commented on on p. 25.
Scarlet Fever and Diphtheria continued to be prevalent, but on
the whole the type of disease was fairly mild.
Arising out of proposals by the Shoreditch Borough Council,
meetings have taken place between representatives of the Battersea,
Shoreditch and Bethnal Green Borough Councils in connection with
the proposed provision of a joint convalescent home for mothers and
children. A suitable site has been found, and plans and estimates
are now being considered by the respective Councils and the
Ministry of Health. There is a decided need for such an institution
in view of the increasing demand for convalescent facilities for
nursing mothers and young children. In order to attain the full
benefits of the home and to facilitate the admission of mothers with
families, the Council may have to consider the advisability of some
scheme of home helps.
The increasing recognition of the value of ultra-violet radiation
in the prevention and treatment of disease, particularly in babies
and young children, has thoroughly justified the provision of the
lamp at the Welfare Centre. It is hoped in the near future to
extend this form of treatment by the provision of additional
apparatus to enable further types of case to be dealt with, including
the preventive radiation of infants and a session for
expectant mothers.
It is worthy of note that the Council is planning the provision
of a Cleansing Station at Digby Street which will provide four baths.
This should prove a great boon to persons suffering from the unwelcome
attentions of insect pests or afflicted with scabies. At