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GENERAL PROVISION OF HEALTH SERVICES
Hospitals
The remarks set out under this heading in last year's Annual
Report still apply. Our greatest difficulty remains in securing the
admission to hospital, institution or home of the chronic, elderly
sick. This is a problem which applies materially to Southgate, with
its ageing population. I have taken the opportunity to raise our
difficulties in several quarters, notably the Liaison Committee set
up by the North Middlesex Division of the British Medical Association.
There are at least prospects that the position will be
improved by a re-distribution of areas so far as the admission of
chronic, elderly sick to hospital is concerned.
The situation with regard to the admission to a home of
elderly persons still presents great difficulties. The position clearly
is that the number of homes available nowhere approaches the
need. Although the Public Health Department is not responsible
for admissions to hospitals or homes, except to a most limited
extent, we still take a most active interest in the situation, and
have been able to influence the final result on occasion.
It would be a truism to say that the care of the aged represents
a problem which is here to stay, a problem which will certainly
increase as the years pass. Although little of note was achieved
during 1953, there are definite hopes that the problem will be
more realistically and more effectively tackled during 1954. 1
look forward to the day when the many authorities and organisations
which are involved in one way or another with the welfare
of the aged, will be brought more closely together and will act in
concert rather than as separate bodies. There can be little doubt
that such an approach to the problem would result in nothing but
good. At the moment, energy is being dissipated, and allowed, in
part at least, to run to waste. It should be our aim to direct those
energies into the proper channels, to ensure that the maximum use
is being made of the facilities available, that the field is being
adequately and continuously covered. Only when this is done
can we be reasonably sure that the pathetic, indeed tragic, conditions
so often associated with old age receive their proper share of
attention.
At the moment, we must await events, continue to help
wherever help can be afforded, and in every way strive to seek for
betterment. In this connection, I should like to pay a sincere
tribute to the offers of help which I received when 1 brought
forward the suggestion that a scheme might be elaborated to deal
with those elderly, infirm victims of a "Smog" attack. Fortunately,
(here was no need to put the emergency scheme into operation
during 1953. None the less, the response revealed the fact that
willing helpers would be found if an emergency did arise. This
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