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Although these vital statistics can be said to
be satisfactory, I should once again point out that the
numbers concerned are too restricted to allow of lasting
conclusions being drawn. Vital statistics applicable
to an area such as Friern Barnet must be considered over
a long period, so that any appreciable trends may be
observed and studied. Arrangements have been made
for this to be done.
Detailed consideration will be given later in
the Report to individual infectious diseases, but it may
be opportune at this point to say a few words relating
to epidemiology, a subject, a most important subject,
which comes within the province of local authorities
such as Friern Barnet.
It is not so many years since the science of
epidemiology concerned itself almost exclusively with
the causation and prevention of epidemics, outbreaks or
even individual cases of infectious disease. This is
no longer the case, indeed, the word 'epidemiology' has
taken on a profoundly different meaning. Epidemiology
must now take notice of any factor or factors operating
in an area which is likely to affect health in any way.
It must be admitted that the machinery for obtaining the
necessary information from which pertinent conclusions
can be drawn, is by no means perfect. Thus, although
we are in a position to learn about and to investigate
causes which produce mortality among infants and pregnant
women, and although we know a great deal about the health
of our school children, we are still not in a position to
obtain and evaluate sickness figures which affect the
population as a whole. It is difficult to see how
this problem can be overcome. The necessary material
is admittedly in the hands of many persons; the general
practitioner, the Ministry of Pensions and National
Insurance, and industrial Medical Officers, to mention
only three sources of information. As I have said,
however, the machinery for collating this information and
making it available to Medical Officers of Health has
not yet been devised. As the Medical Officer of Health
is charged with the duty of safeguarding the health of
the community for which he acts, and as all factors
affecting health should rightly come within his province,
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