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 1959
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Greenwich Borough]
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71
Horse Troughs
Charlton Church Lane.
Creek Road, Deptford.
Invicta Road, Blackheath.
Tunnel Avenue, East Greenwich.
In addition to the above-mentioned Drinking Fountains and
Horse Troughs one Council urinal and three others attached to
Public Houses are cleansed daily by two attendants.
Free hand-washing facilities, introduced in the interests of Public Health during 1951, were continued with marked success during the year and the following table gives an indication of the growing use made of these facilities:-
| Convenience | Men | Women | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Batley Park | 4,300 | 3,559 | 7,859 |
| Creek Road | 1,800 | 3,405 | 5,205 |
| Greenwich South Street | 2,648 | 3,853 | 6,501 |
| King William Walk | 2,126 | 5,873 | 7,999 |
| Rodmere Street | 1,966 | 4,008 | 5,974 |
| Shooter's Hill Road | 1,633 | 3,439 | 5,072 |
| Totals | 14,473 | 24,137 | 38,610 |
Aged, Infirm and Physically Incapacitated Persons.—
Largely due to medical progress and improvements in social and
environmental conditions the increase in the expectation of life is
likely to continue with an intensification of the accompanying problems
associated with an ageing population.
As a class, ageing people suffer progessively from defects and
diseases of which they apparently often remain unaware and as a
consequence a doctor's advice and treatment is not sought. Metabolism
slows down with some degree of thyroid deficiency, and the
lack of an adequately balanced diet tends to lead to gradual and
undetected deficiency diseases.
Doubtless the slow development of official services specifically
for the aged is due, in a large measure, to the lack of tangible results
when compared with those obtained from facilities afforded the
pediatrician—geriatricians at present are unable to make substantial
wage-earners of old-age pensioners. Nevertheless, much
invalidism of old age is preventable and economically it is preferable
(and cheaper) to keep the elderly mobile and independent than
to expend vast sums in hospitalisation.