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24
DEATHS
The net number of deaths registered during 1960 was 927, of
which 486 were males and 441 females, compared with last year's
total of 926 comprising 481 males and 445 females.
This gives a crude Death Rate for the Borough of 10.91 per
thousand of the population, representing an increase of 0.39 compared
with that of the previous year and a rate which is 0.95
greater than the average for the last ten years, viz., 9.96. The
Crude Death Rate figure is increased to 11.89 when the comparability
figure furnished by the Registrar General for adjusting Local
Deaths, is taken into account.
The adjusted Death Rate is in effect a "corrected" Death
Rate. The Registrar-General has pointed out that if the population
of all areas were similarly constituted as regards the proportion of
their sex and age group components, their crude death rates (deaths
per 1,000 population) could be accepted as valid comparative
measures of the mortalities experienced by the several populations.
Populations, however, are not similarly constituted and their
crude Death Rates therefore fail as true comparative mortality
indexes in that their variations are not due to mortality alone, but
arise also from differences in their population constitution. For
instance, a town with a population consisting of aged persons would
register more deaths than one composed entirely of young and
vigorous adults. Again a town containing a larger number of males
than females records more deaths with a consequent higher Death
Rate than one in which females preponderate.
To overcome this difficulty the Registrar-General has worked
out for each area in the country an adjusting factor which is termed
the Comparability Factor " and is based on the last census population
figure.
The Comparability Factor for Greenwich is 1.09 and may be
regarded as the population handicap to be applied which, when
multiplied by the crude Death Rate for the year, modifies the
latter so as to make it comparable with the country as a whole or
with any similarly adjusted area.
The Death Rates for the County of London and for England
and Wales are 11.9 and 12.0 respectively.
The inset table showing the causes of deaths at all ages has been
supplied by the Registrar-General and is included in accordance
with the Ministry of Health's request.
In the Appendix to the Report will be found a table giving by
districts, the causes of, and ages at death of residents whilst indicating
the numbers actually dying in Public Institutions.