View report page

36
admission of all patients submitted to that Hospital Group as being in
need of hospital treatment and classed as "chronic sick ". Cases on
the chronic sick waiting lists of St. Mary Abbots Hospital in the southern
part of the borough are visited and assessed by the Council's women
health officers. This ensures the early or immediate admission of
patients where the need is urgent on medico-social grounds. There is
usually no difficulty in the admission to hospital for the treatment of
acute conditions.
Where necessary, medical care, home nursing, home helps, convalescent
holidays, financial aid and pensions are arranged with the
appropriate statutory bodies. These, together with various services
operated by the Council augmented by voluntary bodies, are provided to
such good effect that in many cases the need for hospital admission is
postponed indefinitely.
The number of "chronic sick" visits by the women health officers
during the year totalled 55. It was necessary to arrange for 23 old
people to be admitted to hospitals for institutional treatment and, in
addition, 16 cases were admitted to homes for the aged.
Domiciliary Cleansing
Arrangements have been made whereby old people's living accommodation
and household articles are cleansed and, if necessary,
disinfested. Eleven old people were dealt with in 1963.
Laundry
At present no direct authority exists for the Council to provide
a laundry service, as such, for old people. Section 122 of the
Public Health (London) Act, 1936, enables the Council to cause any
article in the house to be cleansed, disinfected or destroyed, if it is
in such a filthy, dangerous or unwholesome condition that health is
affected or endangered thereby. The cleansing of grossly fouled bedding
in cases of incontinence may be dealt with under this section.
To comply with the legal requirements, the Council have given
a general authority to the Medical Officer of Health to take whatever
action appears to him to be necessary under the terms of Section 122 of
the Public Health (London) Act, 1936.
In 37 cases action was taken under the section. The bedding
was marked, laundered at the Council's disinfecting station and returned
to the old people. The scheme works smoothly and appears to fill
a much felt want. Prom stocks of bedding held, the Council are able
to supply linen and bedding on loan to old people while their own is
being laundered, and where possible voluntary organisations are asked
to undertake replacements of much worn articles.
During the year 1,338 separate collections of laundry were
made under this scheme, and the number of articles cleansed totalled
14,801.
Library Facilities
The Libraries Committee authorise the provision of books for
old people confined to their homes. The circulation of the books is
effected by the Women's Voluntary Services mobile library.
Chiropody
The London County Council, with the approval of the Minister
of Health, extended their functions under Section 28 of the National
Health Service Act, 1946, to include a chiropody service, giving