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 1964
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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Discussion
17. This survey was carried out more as a feasibility study of the potentialities of the
punched card system for recording sickness data than as an exact analysis. Nevertheless,
in spite of the difficulties encountered and the imperfections inherent in the figures, it is
felt that the main findings demonstrated by this analysis justified the work involved and
pointed the way to a more precise and more comprehensive survey in the future. It is clear
that as well as sex, age is an important factor and that type of employment has a bearing
on sickness.
18. The striking feature of this analysis is the extent of long-term sickness in the
Council's service and the wastage by premature retirement or death. For convenience
the essential particulars from table 1 are summarised below:
| Age | A.P.T. & C. grades | Teachers | Nurses | Firemen | Ambulance Staff | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | Female | Male | Female | Female | Male | Male | |
| Under 25 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 0.9 | 2.3 | 2.6 | 5.4 | 9.1 |
| 25-34 | 3.0 | 6.8 | 1.5 | 3.1 | 6.8 | 8.1 | 8.8 |
| 25-44 | 4.8 | 9.4 | 2.9 | 5.5 | 6.9 | 13.6 | 10.2 |
| 45-54 | 8.2 | 13.5 | 3.6 | 6.9 | 11.5 | 26.7 | 17.2 |
| 55-64 | 51.0 | 39.2 | 7.1 | 9.5 | 40.5 | 32.5 | 27.3 |
| 65 and over | 57.0 | 32.8 | 10.9 | 14.3 | 42.9 | _ | 25.0 |
| All ages | 8.3 | 9.5 | 3.3 | 5.2 | 8.2 | 13.8 | 14.0 |
| Under 25 | - | 0.11 | - | 0.05 | 0.12 | - | 1.8 |
| 25-34 | 0.06 | 0.35 | — | 0.14 | 0.97 | 1.5 | 0.4 |
| 35-44 | 0.36 | 0.99 | 0.05 | 0.40 | 0.40 | 2.4 | 0.8 |
| 45-54 | 1.53 | 1.56 | 0.46 | 0.45 | 1.58 | 7.2 | 3.3 |
| 55-64 | 14.62 | 17.85 | 1.65 | 2.06 | 14.88 | 11.1 | 5.8 |
| 65 and over | 17.77 | 9.83 | _ | 2.86 | 14.29 | — | — |
| All ages | 1.73 | 1.83 | 0.38 | 0.57 | 1.44 | 3.0 | 21 |
19. Over a period of three years, at ages 55-64 years about one-half (rather less for
females) of A.P.T. & C. staff were absent on sick leave for a period of two months or more;
for teachers the proportion was much lower, rather less than one-tenth, whilst for female
nurses it was two-fifths. For firemen and ambulance staff, where the circumstances of
referral were slightly different, it was about one-third.
The figures for premature retirement or death in the same age group are also very high.
Equated to an annual basis they approximate to five per cent. a year for A.P.T. & C.
grades (men and women) and for female nurses. It is true that permanent ' unfitness for
duty ' may be an exaggeration for staff at these ages; it might be more appropriately termed
' premature retirement’, but there can be no such explanation for death—approximately
one-third of the figures in the category 'died and permanently unfit' in persons aged 55-64
years were deaths whilst in the Council's service in the case of male A.P.T. & C. grades,
teachers (both sexes) and nurses.
Even so, some of the death rates recorded in this survey are not as high as those in the
general population, comparative figures are:
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