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
Marylebone 1921
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for St. Marylebone, Metropolitan Borough]
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56
SANITARY ADMINISTRATION.
Under this, which is made a separate heading by the Ministry of Health, the
Medical Officer of Health is required to make reference to a number of matters,
e.g., staff, hospital accommodation and some others, most of which will be found
dealt with elsewhere.
(1) Staff: Work of sanitary inspectors and other officers engaged in
sanitary work. This matter, so far as the inspectors are concerned, is fully
discussed in an early part of the report.
One officer who has not been mentioned up to the present is the Mortuary
Keeper, and at this point it may be convenient to include a report showing the
extent to which the mortuary was used during the year. Regular visits of
inspection were made to the premises by the Outdoor Superintendent.
Report of Mortuary Keeper.
Number of bodies deposited from 1st January to 31st December, 1921.
| 1921. | Males. | Females. | Total. | For burial only. | For inquests. | Total. | No. of. P.M.'s held | No. of courts held. | No. of Infectious cases. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 11 | 11 | 22 | 15 | 7 | 22 | 4 | 4 | — |
| February | 18 | 14 | 32 | 12 | 20 | 32 | 13 | 6 | — |
| March | 16 | 8 | 24 | 12 | 12 | 24 | 8 | 5 | — |
| April | 15 | 9 | 24 | 7 | 17 | 24 | 11 | 7 | 1 |
| May | 12 | 8 | 20 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 8 | 6 | 1 |
| June | 7 | 5 | 12 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 1 | 3 | — |
| July | 11 | 9 | 20 | 14 | 6 | 20 | 4 | 4 | 1 |
| August | 11 | 9 | 20 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 7 | 4 | — |
| September | 11 | 12 | 23 | 18 | 5 | 23 | 3 | 4 | — |
| October | 9 | 5 | 14 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 6 | 5 | 1 |
| November | 17 | 15 | 32 | 15 | 17 | 32 | 11 | 7 | 1 |
| December | 23 | 18 | 41 | 21 | 20 | 41 | 10 | 7 | 1 |
| Totals | 161 | 123 | 284 | 145 | 139 | 284 | 86 | 62 | 6 |
The fact that there are caretakers (a man and his wife) at the Tuberculosis
Dispensary has already been noted. In addition to looking after the premises these
officers also render great assistance in connection with conduct of the clinics, taking
notes, helping in the weighing of the patients, etc.
(2) Hospital accommodation.—This being a matter with which the
Borough Councils in London have no direct concern, it is not considered
necessary to make special reference to it.
(3) Local Acts, special local orders and their administration.—There
are no Acts or Orders applicable in the Borough which do not apply to other
parts of London. The London County Council (General Powers) Acts contain
a number of provisions under which a considerable amount of work is done, e.g.,
those relating to food places where food is dealt with. Reference is made to
these elsewhere.