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HEALTH DEPARTMENT;
227/233 Commercial Road,
London
E1 2BU
TO: The Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors
of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Mr. Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen
I present the annual report,on the health of the borough for 1971 •
It has been a year of rumour and counter rumour as plans are formulated for
the unification of the National Health Service by April 1974. For some time in this
borough increasing liaison between the three areas of the health service has been
fostered. Joint liaison committees exist with members from the London Hospital group,
other hospital groups, and with general practitioner and local health authority
representatives. In addition a special committee has been set up to discuss the future
planning of health services by St. Bartholomews, and the London Hospital:, and the
London Boroughs of Hackney and Tower Hamlets and the City of London No doubt when the
constituent elements of the Area and District boards in the locality have been
finally agreed executive powers will enable tentative plans to be incorporated in
future policy decisions.
Future impetus to joint training schemes in nursing as between hospitals and
the community nursing services has been encouraged in 1971. Effective links with
hospital nursing staff and our district services ensure adequate information being
available to maintain continuity of care when patients pass backwards and forwards
across the interface of hospital and community.
Schemes of attachment of district nurses to general practices have multiplied.
By early 1972. more than a third of the nursing staff will work in this way. Less
advance has been made in the case of health visitors as their work at child health
clinics remains of paramount importance until such time that more local general
practitioners take a greater interest in the provision of well baby clinics at
their surgeries undertaking all the fundamental work now carried out at our infant
welfare clinics An indicat ionofthe load borne by this authority is given by the data
on vaccination and immunisation which shows that year after year more than 90% of
these procedures are undertaken at local health authority clinics
Family planning services have continued to expand. The pilot domiciliary scheme
has extended since its provision on an agency basis by the Family Planning Association
assisted by grant under the Urban Aid Scheme
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