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Medical Officer of Health and another registered general medical
practitioner and where agreement to receive such patients has been
reached with the hospital or institution authorities. If necessary
the court or justice may act ex parte. Orders so made under the
Amendment Act are limited to a period not exceeding 3 weeks and
applications for extensions of this period must be made in
accordance with the procedure laid down in Section 47.
During the year no cases occurred where the provisions of the
National Assistance Act for compulsory removal had to be enforced.
Experience shows that friendly persuasion is the best
method especially if the situation is explained carefully to old
people that the Health Department is here only to serve their best
interests.
Cleansing of Old People.—Section 43 of the London County
Council (General Powers) Act, 1953, provides for the cleansing of
any aged person in the district who :
(a) is verminous or for any other reason in need of cleansing
in order to prevent injury or the danger of injury to
health ; and
(b) is so enfeebled that he is unable to avail himself of any
facilities for cleansing himself provided by the authority
under any enactment or to cleanse himself properly.
In this respect, during the current year, 538 baths were given
to dirty or verminous elderly persons at the Cleansing Station and
1,499 home baths were effected. Figures for the previous year
were 544 and 1,287 respectively and in 1959 the figures were 436
and 742.
Laundry Service.—Under Section 122 of the Public Health
(London) Act, 1936, the Council is empowered to cause to be
cleansed " any articles which are filthy, dangerous or unwholesome
and liable to affect or endanger health." Advantage has been taken
not only of this section but also Sections 124 and 194 to introduce a
laundry service in order to deal suitably with what has always been
a major problem, namely, the treatment of badly soiled clothes,
bed-linen, etc., from the homes of elderly people.
Cases in need of such assistance are brought to the notice of the
department by Hospitals, District Nurses, Doctors and by ordinary
routine investigation of complaints.
From the Council's limited stocks of bedding and clothing it is
possible in certain circumstances for temporary supplies of linen,
etc., to be made to people whose own is being laundered, and
co-operation with voluntary organisations often results in the repair
or replacement of outworn articles.