London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Leyton 1945
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Leyton]
This page requires JavaScript
The periods during which these children attended were:—
| Less than 1 week | 48 children |
| ,, „ 4 weeks | 36 „ |
| ,, ,, 8 weeks | 27 „ |
| More than 8 weeks | 41 |
| 152 |
The following figures show the periods of attendance of these 308 children:—
| Less than 1 week | 54 children |
| „ ,, 4 weeks | 47 |
| ,, ,, 6 months | 121 |
| More than 6 months | 86 |
| 308 |
By comparing these two sets of figures (of which the first set is
included in the second) it will be seen that the great majority of
early withdrawals (under four weeks) occurred during the first
year of the nurseries' existence.
With regard to the early withdrawal of children, which is
disappointing from an administrative point of view, it has been the
experience of your medical and nursing staff that the mothers who
submitted the most urgent appeals for the immediate admission
of their children were generally those who withdrew their children
in the shortest time after admission.