London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Wandsworth 1962
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Wandsworth, Metropolitan Borough]
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9
ACCIDENTS IN THE HOME
Tables showing figures of accidents in the home, introduced for
the first time in 1958, are reproduced below, and include figures for
1962, calculated as described in the 1958 Report.
HOME ACCIDENT CASES DURING 1956 to 1962
TABLE I
| Cause of Accident | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall- | |||||||
| On stairs | 120 | 112 | 122 | 130 | 131 | 109 | 76 |
| From ladder | 21 | 18 | 12 | 19 | 20 | 8 | 9 |
| From chair | 18 | 18 | 21 | 29 | 21 | 22 | 19 |
| Outside | 32 | 18 | 16 | 35 | 21 | 17 | 24 |
| In garden | 45 | 31 | 25 | 43 | 35 | 34 | 30 |
| In bath | 1 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| From one level to another | 42 | 42 | 33 | 32 | 35 | 45 | 52 |
| On same level | 77 | 57 | 105 | 115 | 110 | 110 | 86 |
| Unspecified | 222 | 240 | 255 | 268 | 338 | 373 | 387 |
| Hit by object | 45 | 15 | 14 | 16 | 20 | 21 | 32 |
| Cooking stove | 15 | 7 | 13 | 17 | 15 | 13 | 12 |
| Teapots | 4 | 2 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 |
| Other boiling water | 18 | 25 | 12 | 17 | 13 | 16 | 25 |
| Electric shock | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Poisoning | 27 | 34 | 24 | 24 | 48 | 48 | 45 |
| Gassing | 9 | 9 | 12 | 19 | 12 | 14 | 13 |
| Knife-like wounds | 69 | 51 | 36 | 47 | 48 | 38 | 45 |
| Fires | 24 | 10 | 24 | 11 | 10 | 15 | 16 |
| Windows | 7 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 4 |
| Suffocation | 1 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| Not specified | 13 | 53 | 44 | 31 | 39 | 41 | 41 |
| Totals | 812 | 755 | 784 | 886 | 937 | 944 | 930 |
| Rate per 10,000 population | 240 | 22.4 | 23.2 | 26.2 | 27.6 | 26.9 | 27.1 |
TABLE II
Age groups and percentages
| 1956 % | 1957 %. | 1958 % | 1959 % | 1960 % | 1961 % | 1962 % | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 1 | 10 | 1.2 | 10 | 1.4 | 14 | 1.7 | 11 | 1.3 | 12 | 1.3 | 14 | 1.6 | 14 | 1.7 |
| 1- | 26 | 3.2 | 25 | 3.3 | 29 | 3.7 | 31 | 3.4 | 33 | 3.6 | 35 | 3.9 | 36 | 4.0 |
| 2- | 30 | 3.7 | 26 | 3.4 | 30 | 3.8 | 35 | 3.8 | 35 | 3.9 | 82 | 8.6 | 84 | 9.0 |
| 3 and 4 | 31 | 3.8 | 35 | 4.6 | 36 | 4.6 | 40 | 4.5 | 45 | 4.8 | 83 | 8.7 | 84 | 8.9 |
| 5-19 | 96 | 11.7 | 81 | 10.7 | 84 | 10.8 | 102 | 11.8 | 110 | 11.6 | 71 | 7.4 | 69 | 7.3 |
| 20-59 | 252 | 31.0 | 232 | 30.7 | 239 | 30.5 | 268 | 30.5 | 280 | 30.4 | 129 | 13.7 | 123 | 13.2 |
| 60-69 | 93 | 11 .6 | 91 | 12.0 | 82 | 10.5 | 102 | 11.6 | 110 | 11.8 | 168 | 17.7 | 167 | 17.8 |
| 70-79 | 150 | 18.5 | 133 | 17.7 | 141 | 17.9 | 155 | 17.3 | 157 | 16.4 | 124 | 13.0 | 124 | 13.3 |
| 80+ | 123 | 15.3 | 122 | 16.2 | 129 | 16.5 | 142 | 15.8 | 155 | 16.2 | 238 | 25.4 | 229 | 24.8 |
| Totals | 812 | 100 | 755 | 100 | 784 | 100 | 886 | 100 | 937 | 100 | 944 | 100 | 930 | 100 |