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1
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors of the Borough of
Hornsey.
Lambs and Gentlemen,
I have the honour to present my annual report on the
Health Services of the Borough for the year ending 31st
December, 1938.
The outstanding event of the year was the crisis of
September, when Europe was on the brink of war. l'or a year
before the crisis Air Raid Precautions had occupied much of
the time and attention of the Health Department in training
personnel for the Casualty Services. For the remainder of the
year A.R.P. continued to make increasing demands on the staff
and this state of affairs has continued unabated during 1939.
At a time when everybody's thoughts are concentrated on
war and the urgent preparation for war, it is, I hope, a relief
to remember that peace hath her victories no less than war.
1 have attempted to illustrate somerthese in this report.
The vital statistics for the ytjar are excellent. The death
rate has been stationary between 11 and 12 per 1,COO of the
population for the last ten years. The birth rate has shown
a decided trend upwards from its lowest figure of 1083 per
1,001) in 1933 to 1238 in 1938. The infant mortality rate of
32 58 per 1,000 births is the lowest ever recorded in the Borough.
There were no deaths from puerperal sepsis and only three from
other causes connected with childbirth.
Preventive medicine is a field of effort in which there is
generally a long time between sowing the seed and reaping the
harvest. The statistics of one year's effort are of relatively
little value. We need to take longer views to determine the
direction and rate of progress. I have therefore prepared
special reports on some features of the work covering periods
as far back as reliable statistics are available, e.g.: —
Housing. (See chart.)
I his report shows the results of the Council's determination
to clear the Borough of unfit houses. Parallel with this effort
there has been continuous work in the abatement of
overcrowding.