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
Greenwich 1948
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Greenwich Borough]
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Children designated as premature were the subject of special
visits by the Health Visitors who submitted reports in respect of
these infants to the Medical Officer of Health. Such reports
indicated the need for a Home Help or if other special arrangements
were considered necessary.
The following table gives particulars in respect of the 6 months period ended 4th July, 1948:—
| Where Born | Number Born | Died during 1st 24 hrs. | Died during 1st month | Survived after 1st month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hospital | 65 | 5 | 15 | 45 |
| Home | *12 | Nil | 2 | 10 |
| Total | 77 | 5 | 17 | 55 |
*Nine of these children were nursed entirely at home.
The number of premature babies notified during the above
period whose mothers resided in the Borough was 27. Of these 7
died ; the remainder were reported upon as progressing satisfactorily.
Day Nursery.—The Council's Day Nursery at Conley Street,
East Greenwich, provided places for 42 children up to the age of 2
years and the available accommodation was fully utilised.
Primarily intended for babies of mothers who were engaged on
full time work of National importance, cases were accepted on
compassionate or hardship grounds from non-working mothers
provided vacancies existed.
Health Visitors.—The following tables show (A) the number of visits made by the Health Visitors during the first half of the year in connection with Births and cases if Infectious Diseases, and (B) number of Infant Consultations and Ante-Natal Clinics attended and miscellaneous visits:—
| Table A. | Visits | Re-visits | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infants under 1 year | 875 | 1,587 | 2,462 |
| Children 1—5 years | 61 | 2,691 | 2,752 |
| Measles (under 5 years) | 273 | 49 | 322 |
| „ (over 5 years) | 283 | 24 | 307 |
| Whooping Cough (under 5 years) | 136 | 3 | 139 |
| „ „ (over 5 years) | 105 | 3 | 108 |
| Pneumonia | 1 | — | 1 |
| Puerperal Pyrexia and Fever | 6 | 2 | 8 |
| Diarrhœa | 9 | 3 | 12 |
| Ophthalmia Neonatorum | 6 | — | 6 |
| Inflammation of Eyes | 5 | 1 | 6 |
| Total | 1,760 | 4,363 | 6,123 |