View report page

4
TO THE MAYOR, ALDERMEN AND COUNCILLORS OF
THE BOROUGH OF LEYTON.
Me. Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I beg to submit ray Annual Report as Medical Officer of Health
and School Medical Officer for the year 1941. In accordance with
the direction of the Ministry of Health and the Board of Education
the Report has been abbreviated as far as possible.
The birth rate, 13.31 per thousand of the population, is slightly
less than that (14.02) of the previous year; but slightly greater
than the rates of the six years preceding the outbreak of war. The
comparative rate for England and Wales is 14.2.
The general death rate (13.46) shows a decrease compared with
that (16.2) of the previous year. The infantile mortality rate (38.30
per thousand live births) is the second lowest ever recorded in the
Borough, and compares favourably with the rate of 59 for England
and Wales. No Leyton mother died during the year due to diseases
or accidents of pregnancy or childbirth.
Since the outbreak of war the incidence of notifiable infectious
disease has been unexpectedly and inexplicably low. For instance,
during the year under review the incidence of both scarlet fever
and diphtheria have been less than a quarter of the incidence during
the last complete pre-war year.
The Department under my control has continued to be responsible
for the civil defence casualty service, and for the medical and
nursing arrangements in public shelters; but as these activities
and duties are not included by the Ministry of Health among the
subjects to be dealt with by the Medical Officers of Health in their
annual reports, no reference is made to them.