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86
Hospital
car service
Both the number of patients conveyed and the mileage run by the County of London
hospital car service decreased during the year as compared with 1951 but the decline in
mileage from 1,740,930 miles to 1,504,138 miles is greater, proportionately, than that
in the number of patients—from 149,046 to 135,523. This again, reflects the greater
proportion of ' ambulance-train-ambulance ' journeys.
During the year the last of the four area offices of the hospital car service occupying
rented premises was transferred to accommodation provided at one of the Council's
general ambulance stations.
Arrangements
in North
Woolwich
The arrangement whereby the West Ham county borough council provides, on
behalf of the Council, ambulance services in the two parts of the metropolitan borough
of Woolwich which lie north of the River Thames, continued during the year.
Premises
During the year, following long delays due to the restrictions upon capital investment
and, more recently, to the shortage of steel, work proceeded on three of the proposals
contained in the Council's scheme, approved by the Minister of Health in 1948, for the
development of the ambulance service, as follows:
Eastern ambulance station—Adaptations to provide increased vehicle accommodation.
Block A, commenced in November, 1951, was completed in June, 1952. Work on
Block B, which was delayed owing to the necessity of revising the scheme to reduce the
quantity of steel required, commenced in December, 1952, and was still in progress at
the end of the year.
South-Western ambulance station—Adaptations to increase the vehicle accommodation,
to provide a new administrative block and to improve the entrance to the station.
Work commenced in September, 1952, with the demolition of the former office block.
This stage was completed and the extension of the garage was commenced.
'V' (City of London) accident ambulance station—Replacement of former temporary
structure by a permanent building. Work commenced in December, 1952, and, by
courtesy of the Board of Governors of the nearby Royal Hospital of St. Bartholomew,
arrangements were made for the ambulance and crew to be temporarily accommodated
within the precincts of the hospital during the rebuilding period.
In addition to the above-mentioned items, major works were carried out during the
year at 'A' (Fulham) accident ambulance station to provide a new petroleum store,
additional lavatory accommodation and improved facilities for civil defence training.
Other development proposals have been further delayed owing to the need to revise
building plans to reduce the use of steel.
Vehicles
During the year, two large ambulances and five single-stretcher ambulances were added
to the fleet and four large ambulances were modified to take either recumbent or sitting
patients. To complete the revised 1952-53 vehicle replacement programme approved
by the Council, ten single-stretcher ambulances remain to be delivered and 21 large
ambulances to be similarly modified. In December, 1952, the Council authorised the
purchase in 1953-4 of 15 taxi-cab type vehicles to assist in dealing with the mounting
volume of sitting-case work.
Road safety
During the year, facilities were made available to a number of newspapers and periodicals
in connection with articles on road safety, etc., and vehicles, equipment and off-duty
staff were made available to the British Broadcasting Corporation in connection with
three documentary programmes on this and other related subjects.