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
Ealing 1963
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Ealing]
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day club for old people on a site off the Greenford Road. Architects have now been
employed to submit plans to the Borough Council for Bye-law and Town Planning
consent and these should be ready in early 1964. The main purpose of the building
will be to provide day-club facilities for the elderly and a kitchen large enough to
prepare meals for club members and for the meals on wheels service. The full capacity
of the kitchen is planned to provide 400 meals per day.
HOLIDAYS FOR OLD PEOPLE
Holidays for the elderly are arranged by the Women's Voluntary Service and the
Greenford Philanthropic Society, supported by grants from the Borough Council.
This valuable service provides both mental and physical recreation for those who would
otherwise be unable to have a holiday.
During the year the Women's Voluntary Service took 240 people to Bexhill-on-Sea,
and the Greenford Philanthropic Society took an increased number of 50 to Ramsgate.
Many letters of application have been received from the old people.
SOILED LINEN CLEANSING SERVICE
This service provides for the collection and washing of soiled linen from households
where an incontinent person is being cared for. The service is provided by the Public
Health Department in co-operation with the Baths Laundry Service. Applications for
this service should be made to the Medical Officer of Health. Laundry is collected and
delivered on Mondays and Thursdays and there is no charge to the applicant. I should
like to acknowledge the continued help given by the Catholic Women's Guild in
repairing worn linen and clothing.
The table below shows the use made of this service during the past six years.
| 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. of new cases dealt with during the year | 56 | 67 | 83 | 69 | 86 | 92 |
| No. of cases remaining at end of year | 38 | 39 | 42 | 34 | 41 | 38 |
| No. of cases that died | 35 | 31 | 48 | 30 | 42 | 30 |
| No. of cases removed to hospital | 22 | 41 | 30 | 22 | 31 | 32 |
| No. of cases where other arrangements were made | 2 | 3 | 16 | 3 | 33 | |
| Total number of articles dealt with | 36,723 | 59,004 | 48,847 | 34,727 | 38,211 | 32,968 |
| Total number of collections | 2,766 | 4,822 | 2,954 | 3,058 | 3.041 | 2,899 |
| Average number of articles per collection | 13.3 | 12.2 | 16.5 | 11.0 | 12.6 | 11.37 |
LEAFLET OF SERVICES AVAILABLE
As it was considered that the widest publicity should be given to the services available
to the elderly in the Borough it was decided to produce, for distribution, a leaflet
giving all the available information.
The lay-out of the leaflet was kindly designed by students at the Ealing Technical
College and School of Art. 16,000 copies were printed and distributed through the
Ministry of Pensions Offices. The leaflet gives details of the most important services
obtainable and judging by the number of additional copies required it would seem
that it is of real value to the aged and those working for them.
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