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4
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors of the
Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury.
Mr. Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I have the honour to present my Annual Report for 1951 of the
work of the Public Health Department. This report is prepared in
an abbreviated form in accordance with instructions given by the
Ministry of Health.
I am glad to be able to report that the general health of the
community as in recent years has remained good, and that there
was no serious outbreak of any infectious disease.
The Birth Rate was 17.9 and shows little change from preceding
years.
The Infant Mortality Rate was 24.4 and the Still Birth Rate 1.9.
Although the record low rates for 1950 were not quite maintained,
yet these rates are lower than those for 1949 and below those for
England and Wales and those for London as a whole. It is also
satisfactory to note that the death rate among illegitimate infants was
only very slightly higher than among others.
It is with regret that it is my duty to call attention to a rise in
the general death rate to 14.3, whereas the corresponding rates for
London and the whole country rose to only a lesser extent, namely
to 13.1 and 12.5 respectively. This rise is more than could be
accounted for by the higher proportion of those of the higher age
groups in Finsbury than elsewhere. The increase is due to a slightly
larger number of deaths in every age group above 25, and mainly
in deaths from vascular lesions of the nervous system, coronary
disease, Bronchitis and Pneumonia.
The incidence of measles, whooping cough and dysentery was
high during the year as shown in the Section dealing with Infectious
Diseases. It will be seen that the rates for these and certain other
diseases were materially higher than those for the County of London.
I am satisfied, however, that this is largely, if not entirely, due to