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
Bethnal Green 1938
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Bethnal Green Borough]
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33
Through the courtesy of neighbouring Medical
Officers of Health I also received copies of notifications
of births of Bethnal Green babies which took
place outside the Borough, information as to 475
live babies and 13 stillbirths being received in this
way.
The net total of notified live births belonging to
the Borough was 1,322.
WORK OF HEALTH VISITORS. The following table gives some account of the outdoor work of the Health Visitors so far as this can be expressed in statistics:—
| Visits | Re-visits | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Babies (under 1 year) | 1,337 | 11,827 | ||
| Children (1—2 years) | 3 | 6 | 4,930 | 14,265 |
| „ (2—3 years) | 2 | 4,182 | ||
| „ (3—4 years) | — | 3,044 | ||
| „ (4—5 years) | 1 | 2,109. | ||
| Mothers (Ante-Natal) | 945 | 597 | ||
| „ (Post-Natal) | 72 | 141 | ||
| Stillbirths | 36 | 20 | ||
| Infant Deaths | 28 | 5 | ||
| Maternal Deaths | 1 | — | ||
| Puerperal Fever (13) and Pyrexia (44) | 21 | 36 | ||
| Ophthalmia Neonatorum | 11 | 32 | ||
| Acute Poliomyelitis | — | 7 | ||
| Other Notifiable Diseases | 3 | 2 | ||
| Diarrhœa and Enteritis | 2 | 5 | ||
| Measles (1,690), and German Measles (17) | 708 | 999 | ||
| Whooping Cough | 165 | 346 | ||
| Other Non-Notifiable Diseases | 14 | 43 | ||
| Milk Grants | 1 | — | ||
| Convalescent Treatment | 1 | — | ||
| Other matters | 161 | 200 | ||
| Total Visits | 3,512 | 28,525 | ||
| Grand Total | 32,037 | |||
| In addition, 64 visits and 2,346 re-visits were rendered futile owing to the absence of the mother or the occasion being inconvenient for an interview. | ||||