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
Kensington 1961
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Kensington Borough]
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18
ACCIDENTS IN THE HOME
The London County Council, which is the Ambulance authority,
have been keeping records of home accident cases (both fatal and nonfatal)
removed to hospital by them.
The Medical Officer for the County Council has very kindly
supplied me with the following figures for 1961. It has not been
possible to give details of cases by cause in age groups; nor any
differentiation between male and female for the borough.
The figures relate to Health Division 1 of which Kensington forms a part together with Chelsea, Fulham and Hammersmith.
| Cause of accident | Division 1 | London County | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall - On stairs | 174 | 1,119 | |
| From ladder | 14 | 111 | |
| From chair | 16 | 174 | |
| Outside | 42 | 217 | |
| In garden | 14 | 227 | |
| In bath | 3 | 15 | |
| From one level to another | 60 | 412 | |
| On same level | 148 | 920 | |
| Unspecified | 435 | 3,261 | |
| Hit by object | 32 | 202 | |
| Cooking stove | 17 | 123 | |
| Teapots | 5 | 45 | |
| Other boiling water | 13 | 151 | |
| Electric shock | 6 | 39 | |
| Poisoning | 46 | 338 | |
| Gassing | 26 | 165 | |
| Knife-like wounds | 47 | 337 | |
| Fires | 41 | 178 | |
| Windows | 6 | 42 | |
| Suffocation | 4 | 18 | |
| Not specified | 35 | 337 | |
| Total: | 1,184 | 8,431 | |
The distribution of the cases in Division 1 is shown in the following table:-
| Borough | Population (1961) | Number of Accidents | Rate per 10,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kensington | 169,080 | 459 | 27.3 |
| Fulham | 111,500 | 308 | 27.7 |
| Chelsea | 48,490 | 111 | 22.9 |
| Hammersmith | 108,010 | 306 | 28.3 |
| Division 1 | 437,080 | 1,184 | 27.1 |
| County of London | 3,179,980 | 8,431 | 26.5 |