View report page

London County Council
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COUNCIL, 1934
VOL. IV (Part II) PUBLIC HEALTH (Hospital Finance)
(Year to 31st March, 1935)
REPORT ON THE FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED
31st MARCH. 1935, OF ADMINISTERING THE HOSPITALS, ETC., UNDER
THE CONTROL OF THE HOSPITALS AND MEDICAL SERVICES
COMMITTEE.
By Sir Frederick Menzies, K.B.E., M.D., LL.D., F.R.C.P., F.R.S.E.,
County Medical Officer of Health and School Medical Officer.
Introduction
This report for the year ended 31st March, 1935, is the fifth since the transfer
to the Council on 1st April, 1930, of the hospitals and institutions used as hospitals,
and the district medical, ambulance and laboratory services previously maintained
by the Metropolitan Asylums Board and the London boards of guardians.
The steady progress referred to last year in the direction of unifying the administration
of the various hospitals, etc., has been maintained, but many of the
variations in cost resulting from differing scales of remuneration, standards of
staffing and various other matters of administration in the services of the late
authorities, to which the Council is committed by the terms of the Local Government
Act, 1929, still obtain, and will, as previously stated, take some years to work
themselves entirely out. So long as they persist they will hinder the attainment
of uniform costs where uniformity might otherwise be expected.
Inventory
records
The work of initially checking and, where necessary, rewriting the inventory
records of the hospitals and institutions was completed within the year and,
although it was carried out under difficult conditions due to building alterations and
reconditioning of premises, was completed well within the estimated period. With
regard to the future, it is proposed to maintain a certain number of clerks as a
peripatetic staff to be allocated to hospitals from time to time in connection with the
annual checking of the inventory stocks. Amongst this number an assistant
technically qualified to deal with the stocks of surgical equipment will be included.
Stock books
The new forms of stock records mentioned in last year's report have proved so
successful in use that consideration is being given to the introduction of a third
book in substitution for the present records of issues of staff uniforms. Considerable
detail is necessary with regard to these stocks, issues of which are made to individuals
and not in bulk to units as in the case of other stocks. It is anticipated that the
new form will be more economical and efficient than the old.
Regrading of
staff (arrears
of pay
affecting
costs)
The process of regrading the hospital staffs was continued during the year under
review, and certain expenditure incurred in 1934-35 was in respect of arrears of pay
for services rendered prior to 1st April, 1934. The figures representing the arrears
are separately shown in the cost tables appearing in this volume as in previous
reports. In some cases the amount is sufficiently substantial to be important when
a true commrison is sought between the total costs of two or more vears.
Obsolete and
redundant
stocks
The Council took over from the previous authorities considerable stocks of
engineering and building materials, and it was found in many instances that the
quantities held were far in excess of requirements for maintenance purposes for a
reasonable period. During the year a review of these stocks, in which the chief
engineer and the chief officer of supplies have collaborated, has been in progress,
with two main objects:—(1) the disposal of such stocks as are of obsolete type or
which represent spare parts of machinery since disposed of; and (2) the transfer
elsewhere of usable stocks which are in excess of the reasonable requirements of the
particular hospital concerned.
1