View report page

6
Public Health Department,
Town Hall, Greenwich, S.E.10.
October, 1953.
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors,
Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I beg to present this account of the state of the public health in
Greenwich in 1952. It is fairly comprehensive, embracing not only
the work of the Health Department, but containing information
gleaned from many sources, which has some connection with the
health of our Borough and which otherwise might not be available
for easy reference in future years.
The population increased by 1,490, and although the birth rate
decreased from 15.16 to 14.34, the death rate also decreased by
0.67 to 10.57. The Infantile Mortality rate at 14.62 is by far the
lowest ever recorded in the history of the Borough and is possibly
about the lowest in the country. However, where comparatively
small numbers are involved too much importance should not be
attached to a figure for one particular year. Wide statistical
variations are possible from year to year. The factors involved in
Infant Mortality are many and sometimes indirect, but the work
of the Maternity and Child Welfare Clinics must have contributed in
no small measure to the attainment of this low figure. Related to
this low Infantile Mortality Rate is the fact that there were no
deaths from Infantile Diarrhoea, at one time a great scourge in
the early months of life.
Infectious Diseases continued to decline and Measles, Whooping
Cough and Dysentery were less prevalent. Scarlet Fever showed
an increase of 120 and, unfortunately, there were 4 cases of
Diphtheria : one case was a soldier admitted to hospital from foreign
service and the other 3 were non-immunised children living at a
Rest Centre in somewhat squalid conditions. These cases are a
reminder that Diphtheria can still strike when immunity is low.
There were 7 cases of Anterior Poliomyelitis : one death is recorded
but this was a soldier who contracted his illness either abroad or in
some other part of the country and was transferred to a local
hospital where he subsequently died. In none of the cases was
any relationship to recent inoculation or trauma established nor was
there any evidence of case-to-case infection.