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 1934
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for St. Marylebone, Metropolitan Borough]
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The main sources of the notifications are set out below. In some cases duplicate notifications, from different sources, were received with regard to the same birth.
| No. | Per cent. | |
|---|---|---|
| From parents | 10 | 0.3 |
| „ doctors | 95 | 2.9 |
| „ midwives | 262 | 7.8 |
| „ hospitals, nursing homes, etc. | 3,013 | 89.0 |
| 3,380 | 100.0 |
Of the total births notified, 184 referred to still-births (107 males and 77
females); 2,151 took place at Queen Charlotte's Hospital; 100 at Middlesex Hospital;
106 at the St. Marylehone Home; and 419 were born at home. Of those
notified as having occurred in St. Marylehone 2,535 belong to other Boroughs.
Of the 184 still-births 30 (17 males and 13 females) were to St. Marylebone mothers.
DEATHS AND DEATH RATES.
The number of deaths registered in 1934 was 1,171. This figure is inclusive
of persons who, though normally resident in the Borough, died in institutions
outside, but, exclusive of persons who, though they died in St. Marylebone, were
ordinarily resident in other parts of England or Wales. Deaths of persons
ordinarily resident outside the borders of England and Wales are included in the
St. Marylebone figures, if they occur in the Borough.
The corrected death-rate* per thousand for the year was 12.6.
In the previous year, the rate was 12.2 and the number of deaths 1,224.
The following short table shows the death-rates in the several registration sub-districts in 1934, and compares them with those of the years onward from 1928 :—
| 1928 | 1929 | 1930 | 1931 | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Souls | 9.9 | 13.3 | 10.2 | 10.8 | 12.8 | 10.5 | 10.9 |
| St. Mary | 12.0 | 18.8 | 11.5 | 12.4 | 11.4 | 12.7 | 12.1 |
| Christ Church | 13.4 | 15.8 | 11.8 | 13.1 | 14.1 | 14.2 | 13.8 |
| St. John | 12.8 | 13.8 | 12.1 | 12.6 | 12.8 | 12.1 | 13.3 |
| The Borough | 11.1 | 13.2 | 10.6 | 12.3 | 12.4 | 12.2 | 12.6 |
*By a "corrected death rate" is meant one which has been treated in such a way, raised or
lowered in a certain ratio, as to be comparable with the death rates similarly treated of other
districts. That "correction'' is necessary is due to the fact that differences in death rates in various
areas are not entirely dependent upon the sanitary conditions existing in these areas, but also on the
constitution (age and sex) of the population. A population consisting of aged persons would show more
deaths than one consisting entirely of young and vigorous adults ; a population made up of a large
number of males and a small number of females has more deaths and a higher death rate than one
in which the females outnumber the males. The death rates of such populations are not comparable
the one with the other nor with those of populations differently constituted. To overcome this
difficulty the Registrar General issues a "factor for correction" for each district which represents
the number of times which the actual death rate of each must be raised in order to permit of its
examination side by side with the rates of other districts. The "factor for correction" in the case of
St. Marylebone in 1934 is 0 99, and the corrected death rate is obtained by multiplying with this
figure the number of deaths per 1,000, calculated from the total deaths and the population estimated
to the middle of the year.