View report page

ANNUAL (ABRIDGED) REPORT
of the
MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH.
for the Year 1944.
Public Health Department,
Town Hall, N. 16.
25th October, 1945.
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors
of the Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington.
Mr. Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen,
An abridged report concerning the health of the Borough during the
year 1944 is herewith submitted.
During the year there was a considerable no vecant of population
resulting from the variations in enemy activity. Prom January to June
with comparative freedom from enemy action there was a return flow to
London, but with the use of the V weapons many of the residents evacuated
to safer areas.
These changes are reflected in the attendances at the Welfare Centres,
although where possible no changes were made in the number or times of the
sessions.
In spite of this activity in the fifth year of a world war health
statistics were maintained and in some cases improved compared with those
of the previous year. The infantile mortality rate dropped from 41.9 to
32.4 as compared with 58 to 52 respectively for London as a whole. The
birth rate increased from 20.1 to 21.9. It will be noted that the
illegitimate infantile mortality rate was nil.
There has however been a steady deterioration in the housing position
in the borough which has been aggravated by enemy activity. In nay annual
report for 1941, it was stated with satisfaction that there were no known
cases of overcrowding on the 1936 Housing Act standard at the end of that
year. The situation at the end of 1944 was entirely different. Many cases
of overcrowding were known to this department but it was not found possible
to remedy the position as all available housing was required for "bombed
out" families.
There has been a general deterioration in the condition of property
resulting from the absence of routine maintenance and bomb damage. In the
early part of the year 15 inadequately housed families were rehoused in
requisitioned property under Ministry of Health Circular 2845.
The three war-time nurseries continued to meet a very great need.
Offing to the difficulty in finding local girls to act as probationers, a
Hostel was opened at St. Anne's on 14th February, 1944 to acoarmodate
7 probationers and a resident housekeeper. This scheme has worked well and
young girls from the provinces have been found by the Ministry of Labour
for this important work.
The tuberculosis maintenance allowance scheme has continued to be
administered satisfactorily, but experience has confirmed earlier doubts
of the adequacy of the scheme. The allowance in itself is not sufficient
to satisfactorily maintain the family of a man undertaking treatment, and
is particularly inadequate in the case of a man, with a young family, whose
wife is unable to go out to work to supplement the allowance.
It is gratifying to note that the notifications of diphtheria have
been 2, 5 and 3 during the years 1942, 1943 and 1944 respectively. There
has been no death from this disease for the past 5 years. This fall in
the incidence of diphtheria has coincided with the intensive diphtheria
P. T. 0.