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
Barking 1967
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Barking]
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All the applicants with young families were already on the Council's list
for rehousing either by virtue of overcrowding - the majority - or because of
clearance areas, and therefore overcrowding of itself cannot be considered as
a medical reason.
The other main group of applicants were retired pensioners who found
their present accommodation physically unsuitable because of increasing
infirmities. The most frequent problem was the difficulty in climbing stairs.
Often it is necessary to climb four flights of 12 - 14 stairs to reach their
accommodation.
MENTAL HEALTH Work of the Mental Welfare Officers
During the year, 497 patients were referred to the mental health service.
| Mentally Ill | Mentally Sub-Normal | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Referred by general practioners | 120 | 3 | |
| Referred by hospitals on discharge | 119 | - | |
| Referred by hospitals after or during out-patient or day treatment | 90 | - | |
| Referred by Local Education Authority | - | 27 | |
| Referred by police and courts | 16 | 2 | |
| Referred by other sources: e.g. neighbours, relatives, Ministry of Social Security and other social and welfare agencies, inward transfers from other areas | 106 | 14 | |
| 451 | 46 | ||
| Number of persons receiving community care at the end of the year | 269 | 370 | |
| Number of persons attending day centres | 22 | 174 | |
| Number receiving residential care | 6 | 17 | |
| Number of admissions for temporary residential care to relieve the family | 2 | 28 | |
| During the year the following admissions to mental hospital were dealt with by the department: | |||
| Informal | 85 | ||
| Compulsory | 87 | ||
| Via Court | 1 | 173 | |
Castle School
During the autumn term, the London Borough of Havering were able to
accommodate 24 of their children who had been attending Castle School, and this
allowed 13 Barking children who had been attending centres in Redbridge and
Havering to be accepted at the school, thus enabling all Barking trainees to
attend a school within the Borough.
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