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Health Department,
Civic Centre,
Dagenham.
To: THE MAYOR, ALDERMEN AND BURGESSES OF THE LONDON BOROUGH OF BARKING
Once again I have to report a year of progress and activity in the
Health Department. Unfortunately pressure of work has delayed by many
months the publication of this report.
During 1968 the major causes of death were diseases of the heart
and circulatory system, cancer, pneumonia, bronchitis and other respiratory
diseases.
The deaths from cancer are particularly worthy of note as one of
the increases noted over 1967 was deaths due to cancer of the lung, from
139 in 1967 to 156 in 1968. The increase was in females as well as males
and should make us redouble our efforts to stop people smoking and so help
to reduce the toll of this avoidable disease.
As far as health education activities are concerned, it was still not
possible to evaluate needs and results because of shortage of staff. However,
some time was given to in-service training of teachers to enable them to
take over much of the health education in the schools at present carried
out by the Health Department. If we can achieve this we may be able to free
some of the staff to concentrate on health education of youth and adults.
Once again I would like to draw attention to the progress made in the
mental health field, not least the opening of a new magnificent Adult
Training Centre with 120 places for adult subnormals. With the closure
of the heavily overcrowded adult centre at Osborne Square it was possible to
convert the Osborne Square Centre into a Sheltered Workshop for high grade
mentally subnormals. The main aim of the workshop is to give a more
concentrated training to selected trainees and to encourage them to earn a
higher wage than would be possible in an ordinary training centre. It is
hoped that by giving them work experience they may be able to progress
to open employment.
During the year a start was made on the hostel for the mentally
subnormal in the Gascoigne Development Area which will provide 25 badly
needed places for the mentally subnormal.
During the year also a new Child Guidance Clinic came into operation
although unfortunately we were unable to secure the permanent services of
a Psychiatrist and had to make use of locums.
The Kingsley Hall Day Centre meet3 a need in the assessment of
handicapped children under five but a new centre giving more space and
accommodation is badly needed.
The Cervical Cytology Clinics continue to function but there has
been a fall in attendances which indicates the need for continued publicity.
The Offices, Shops and Railway Premises Act places an increasing burden
on the Public Health Inspectors and it was a great disappointment that it
was not possible to go ahead with Smoke Control Areas owing to financial
restrictions.
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