London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Kensington 1945
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Kensington Borough]
This page requires JavaScript
- 7 -
Disinfection and Disinfestation.
The Disinfesting station received a direct bomb hit
during the war, but the Borough Engineer at once carried out
temporary repairs and within a few days it was possible to
restart work. In due course, reconstruction will be necessary.
A summary of the work of the disinfecting staff is shown in the following table:-
| A summary of the work of the disinfecting staff is shown in the following table:- | |
| Houses disinfected after infectious disease . | 496 |
| Rooms disinfected in such houses | 528 |
| Houses disinfested after vermin | 294 |
| Rooms disinfested in such houses | 545 |
| Loads of furniture treated with hydrogen cyanide | 69 |
height of bedding dealt with - 216 tons 18 cwt. 2 qtr.
Towards the end of the year, the Council adopted a scheme
involving the use of Dichloro-diphenyl-tri-chlorethane (D.D.T.)
for the eradication of bugs in dwelling houses. This substance
had hitherto been reserved exclusively for use by the Armed
Forces.
The scheme is in the nature of an experiment which is
being observed closely by officials of the Ministry of Health.
It was put into operation early in 1946.
Destruction of Rats ana Mice.
Owing to bomb damage, egress of rats from drains and
sewers became a problem of great importance during the war. Thu
work of complying with the "directions" served on the Council by
the Minister of Pood under the Infestation Order, 1943, continued
during the year and the following table gives a summary:-
Complaints received 745
Premises inspected following complaint 1070
Premises where rats were found 487
Premises where mice were found 116
Premises where other vermin were found 46
Premises where no infestation existed 421
Total number of visits to all premises 6084
Total number of notices served (formal & informal) 124
Premises successfully treated 682
Cases in which advice was given 106
Borough Council properties dealt with 65
In two areas, block treatment procedure was adopted which
involved the simultaneous baiting of all the houses in the area
by the pre-baiting method.
On one occasion during the year, all the sewers in the
borough were dealt with by poison baiting, when it was estimated
that 1,200 rats were destroyed.
Public Mortuary.
The number of bodies taken to the mortuary during the
year was 413. Inquests were held in 79 cases.
Professional Nursing in the Homes.
The total number of cases nursed by the Kensington
District Nursing Association during the year was 1,712, and
the number of visits paid was 41,015. On behalf of the Council
the Association visited 673 cases, paying 10,596 visits.