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iii
Scientific and Industrial Research, changes in the pollution of the atmosphere which will
be recorded over the next few years should be of exceptional interest, and improvement in
the condition of the atmosphere could well be a major exercise in preventive medicine
Supervision
of Food
and
Food
Hygiene
The section of the Report dealing with this subject lists the considerable number of
complaints in regard to the condition of food on purchase which were brought to the notice
of the Department. The nature of the complaints, as seen in the Peport, is very varied and
every case is carefully examined and fully gone into. The majority of the complaints have
some justification for their being brought to the Department and it will be apparent from
the legal proceedings recorded in the same section that statutory enforcement of the
provisions of the Food and Drugs Act is sometimes necessary. Apart from enquiry into
complaints received from members of the public, the Inspector staff concerned carry out a
considerable number of visits to food premises. Co-operation with food traders in
voluntarily improving methods of food storage and food hygiene is, of course, always to be
preferred In the long run, food traders will conform to the standards of hygiene which
the public demand. While complaints, of a trivial nature are not welcomed, it is regarded
as a desirable feature in the interests of the public that a substantial proportion of
housewives should be aware that if they are sold foodstuffs of any nature which appear to
be doubtful, they may obtain an expert opinion at the Public Health Department.
It will also be noted in the summary of legal proceedings that there were a number
of successful prosecutions in respect of unsatisfactory food premises. Finally in this
connection, it should be pointed out that it is only possible for this essential public
health work to be carried out if properly qualified and experienced Public Health
Inspectors are available. Staff shortages have created difficulties in this work as in
other fields and it is not possible to avoid considerations of salary attractions to avoid
reductions in the services which the public naturally and rightly expect.
Health
city
The Islington Home Safety Committee, and a summary of its work during the year are
dealt with in the Report and particular mention can be made of the nepartment's publication
of the handbook, "Sense About Safety " , which includes some of the talks given to
the Home Safety Committee. Attention was also given to other health education work,
including food hygiene and atmospheric pollution.
Elderly
Persons
Although the Council's statutory functions in respect of elderly persons are
relatively limited, nevertheless a considerable volume of work is being done. Elderly
persons are brought to the notice of the Department because of some social, housing health
or sanitary problem which is being encountered and. for which there is no routine solution
on a personal level. There are now approximately 3,000 elderly persons on the Department's
register who for various reasons, have been visited and are being kept under observation
to a greater or lesser extent. Some details of the various ways in which the Department's
staff are able to help elderly persons are given in the Report, but mention may be made in
particular of the valuable cleansing and laundry service, which enables a physically
handicapped elderly person to get himself or herself personally cleansed and deals with the
laundering of clothing and bed linen, the latter being cleansed and returned within twentyfour
hours. The cleansing service includes personal cleansing done at home by the
Department's staff where the person concerned is unable to visit the Public Baths and there
is no bathroom in the house which, unfortunately, is true in most Islington houses. The
Department's ambulance for the transport of persons to the Bathing Centre has also proved
its value.
As in previous years, the elderly persons' section in the Annual Report contains
particulars of individual cases where official action had to be taken under the National
Assistance Act, 1948. and a small selection only of the type of case where persuasion was
successfully applied in the betterment of circumstances in which the old person was
living. Elderly persons, like all others, must be well nourished for the maintenance of
good health. The "Meals-on-wheels' service performs a useful health function, and its
effectiveness from a health point of view could be still further increased if it were
possible to arrange for at least five meals per week instead of the present maximum of
two to the recipients of the service.