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3
ANNUAL REPORT
of the
MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH, 1960.
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors of the Borough of Enfield.
I have pleasure in presenting my Annual Report for 1960.
The main work of the Health Department continued more or
less uneventfully along the usual lines. The environmental health
services continue to be of basic importance, in spite of the recognised
value attached to the more personal health services with
which this report does not deal.
The prevention of infectious disease is still one of the most
important aspects of our work, and in spite of undoubted major
successes in this field, particularly with the more serious diseases,
continued efforts and vigilance are very necessary, as incidents in
other districts have shown.
I am continually stressing the need for protective procedures,
and only by continued acceptance of immunisation methods can
we hope to enjoy the measure of freedom from serious infectious
disease that has been possible during the last number of years. It
is not enough just for individuals to be protected, as only by a high
community level of immunity can we have a satisfactory degree
of safety, and I would urge parents to take advantage of the protection
so readily available to their children and themselves.
Having given this warning, it gives satisfaction to note that
there has been no case of diphtheria in Enfield for over 12 years,
and no case of poliomyelitis for over 2 years. Scarlet fever, in a
milder form than it used to be, is still with us, and there were 63
cases during the year.
Respiratory tuberculosis continued to decline and there were
only 18 new cases and 5 deaths, an encouraging situation but not
yet the final episode.
Although there was a very marked reduction in the number of
cases of measles, this is attributed to some extent to the normal