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5
Deaths ascribed by the Registrar General to "motor vehicle
accidents" were the highest ever recorded and with the steadily
increasing density of road traffic, the Accident Prevention
Campaign faces a formidable task.
Clean Air Act, 1956
The Chief Public Health Inspector records the work done
during the year under review, when the department has endeavoured
to carry out as speedily as possible, the unanimous wish of the
Committee to press forward with schemes to clear the air of the
Borough of smoke pollution. The period is now approaching when
deeds must replace words and a mounting annual expenditure will
have to be met by the Ministry, the local authority and the
householders. It should then be remembered that as one reason
only for this campaign at least 200 Croydon residents die every
year from chronic bronchitis. In many instances, there will be
a long painful illness and slow suffocating death and unquestionably,
they are largely the result of a lifetime of exposure
to polluted air. I think the Committee may be satisfied
that we are proceeding with this task with reasonable speed as
long as the programme which the Council recently approved is
allowed steadily to accelerate in accordance with the Committee^
plans.
Infectious Diseases
1958 will be notable as the year during which efforts were
made to protect all children up to fifteen years of age against
poliomyelitis. There were difficulties because of the various
types of vaccine available, but by the end of the year, over 75%
of those eligible in Croydon had received two doses of vaccine.
The next few years will show whether our hopes that vaccination
will provide effective protection will be realised.
Personal Health Services
The Ministry has suggested that as ten years have not
elapsed since the coming into operation of the National Health
Service Act, a brief review of the period will be of interest.
In 1949, I was able to state that no great difficulties had
arisen as far as the local health authority was concerned in
implementing the requirements of new health legislation. In the