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
London County Council 1948
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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| Special Inspections* | 107,844 | 260,837 |
| Reinspections | 88,243 | |
| Rheumatism supervisory centres (attendances) | 10,505 | |
| Special ear inspection centres (attendances) | 6,496 | |
| Vision centres (new cases) | 31,377 | |
| Nutrition centres (attendances) | 8,452 | |
| Medical inspections in residential schools | 7,920 | |
| Grand total | 419,370 | |
The following table shows the percentages of defects in children inspected at
routine examinations and referred for treatment or observation, with comparable
figures for 1938, 1946 and 1947:—
| Age group and sex | Number of pupils examined | No. of pupils referred for treatment (a) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Percentage | ||||
| 1948 | 1947 | ||||
| Nursery | Boys | 4,569 | 743 | 16.2 | 16.1 |
| Girls | 4,384 | 630 | 14.4 | 14.8 | |
| Entrants | Boys | 19,199 | 3,666 | 19.1 | 18.0 |
| Girls | 18,594 | 3,069 | 16.5 | 15.6 | |
| 7 years old | Boys | 13,276 | 2,895 | 21.8 | 19.4 |
| Girls | 12,946 | 2,746 | 21.2 | 21.2 | |
| 11 years old | Boys | 16,577 | 3,147 | 19.0 | 18.5 |
| Girls | 16,384 | 3,508 | 21.4 | 20.1 | |
| Leavers | Boys | 13,531 | 2,007 | 14.8 | 14.0 |
| Girls | 13,286 | 2,694 | 20.3 | 16.6 | |
| Other ages | Boys | 12,622 | 2,469 | 19.6 | 17.6 |
| Girls | 10,936 | 2,546 | 23.3 | 22.4 | |
| Total (all ages) | Boys & Girls | 156,304 | 30,120 | 19.3 | 18.7 |
| Special schools | Boys & Girls | 1,581 | 403 | 25.5 | 24.8 |
| (a) See note above as to certain defects excluded from this table. | |||||
| 1938 | 1946 | 1947 | 1948 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Numbers examined | 169,995 | 144,500 | 142,064 | 156,304 |
| Skin diseases | 0.80 | 1.3 | 1.20 | 1.22 |
| External eye disease | 0.53 | 0.60 | 0.67 | 0.61 |
| Defective hearing | 0.14 | 0.28 | 3.32 | 0.39 |
| Otitis Media | 0.51 | 0.51 | 0.47 | 0.70 |
| Enlarged tonsils and adenoids | 7.55 | 8.17 | 7.61 | 8.16 |
| Defective speech | 0.16 | 0.27 | 0.43 | 0.53 |
| Enlarged cervical glands | 0.63 | 1.10 | 0.99 | 1.01 |
| Heart and circulation | 1.00 | 0.62 | 0.62 | 0.73 |
| Lung disease (not T.B.) | 1.15 | 1.37 | 1.32 | 1.30 |
| Orthopaedic defects | (b) | (b) | 4.02 | 4.67 |
| Defects of nervous system | (b) | (b) | 0.33 | 0.30 |
| Psychological defects | (b) | (b) | 0.42 | 0.72 |
| Anaemia | 0.31 | 0.35 | 0.31 | 0.29 |
| (b) No exact comparison can be given. | ||||
*These are non-routine inspections of a miscellaneous nature and include pupils urgently brought
to the attention of the school doctor, inspections for employment certificates, for school journeys and
holiday camps, admissions to special schools and periodical inspections of handicapped pupils, etc.
Number
referred for
treatment
The numbers and percentages of children seen at routine inspections who were
referred for treatment (other than for infestation or teeth) in 1948 are shown in the
following table and for comparison the percentages for 1947 are also given:—