View report page

BOROUGH OF WILLESDEN
Health Department,
54 Winchester Avenue,
Kilburn, N.W.6.
July, 1964.
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors
of the Borough of Willesden.
Madam Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen,
The year 1963 was spent under the shadow of the impending disappearance of Willesden and
Wembley and the birth of a new borough combining the two. It has not been a comfortable period; uncertainty
is not an easy companion; but it would be true to say that the work of the Health Department has
continued uninterrupted, developing projects already begun and planning for the future.
One problem from which Wembley is fortunate to be relatively free is the legacy of bad housing,
which continues to be a source of considerable anxiety in Willesden. Resources and staff are unfortunately
insufficient to alleviate it fully, and rehousing is perforce a long-term remedy. Much has been done to cope
with the worst aspects, so that living conditions are at least tolerable for many; but it is to be regretted that
the Housing Act, 1961, with its measures against multi-occupation, has not overcome the wiles of the worst
type of landlord. Further legislation is essential to control this exploitation of tenants.
Smoke control, however, had made further progress. By the end of 1962, there was a band of smoke
control areas stretching from the northern to the southern boundaries of the borough. In 1963, the advance
began into the crowded south-eastern districts where some of the poorer housing conditions are found. It
seemed for a while, however, that our expectations for clean air were due for a setback, when it was revealed
that a new method of gas manufacture had proved so efficient that the by-product, gas coke, would not be
so readily available in the future. With the prospect of shortage of a hitherto common source of solid fuel,
the national programme of smoke control has had to be redirected so that other fuels could replace it. This
has meant greater cost, but the government has increased its financial support, and it is probable that in
the future we will be glad that cleaner and more convenient fuels are being so extensively introduced.
In overcoming air pollution we are helping in the fight against bronchitis. It is sometimes hard for
us to realise that this condition is almost unique to our country, and is known abroad as the English Disease.
This is one national distinction we could well do without. It is such a slow-acting, insidious disease that
we cannot expect to see the results of smoke control for a long time; but they would come all the sooner if
that personal source of air pollution, cigarette smoking, were abandoned. It is probable that for many addicts
this can only be a pious hope, but the prospect of mounting mortality due to this cause from a much deadlier
disease, lung cancer, creates a challenge for the future. I am increasingly inclined to wonder if the propaganda
directed at the adult smoker by health organisations has been of any real value. Whatever fresh
piece of evidence appears, or even if the cost of a packet of cigarettes goes up, the sales falter only temporarily
and then continue to rise. There is a curious blind spot in most smokers; they cling to their addiction,
lament their lack of will, and relieved by confession, resume the habit. The fact that during the next year
several thousand of them will come to a horrible awakening does not bother them at all. It is strange that no
wonder what prodigies they can achieve in other directions, in this they are frequently incapable. I would
not go so far as to say that the adult smoker should be abandoned to his fate, but the time is coming when
there must be a drastic change in the balance of forces. Health propaganda in this field has struggled with inadequate
resources for years against the millionaire advertising of the cigarette manufacturers. Since people
cannot be forbidden to smoke the only resource left is that the Government should stop all advertising of
cigarettes, so that young people at least would be protected against its seductive cunning.
In spite of its small membership, the Willesden Home Safety Committee continues to do useful work
in the prevention of accidents in the home. There is need for more public support for its activities, but perhaps
this will not come until it is more generally realised that it is in the home—not on the roads or in the
factories—that most deaths from accidents occur.
The year saw a satisfactory increase in chiropody staff and there are good prospects of improving
the service still further. One cannot help feeling regret, however, that skilled personnel have to devote their
time to the treatment of foot conditions which could so easily have been prevented. Many of the older
patients are suffering from fashions in footwear going back more than half a century, and most modern
women's shoes are no better in this respect. When one hears the claims of the makers that they are unable
to change the fashion, one can only wonder what is wrong with the designers that they cannot produce a shoe
which is comfortable, efficient and attractive to the customer.
This is being written during the aftermath of the Aberdeen typhoid epidemic, a chastening reminder
that even while we advance into the modern, more hygienic world of the personal health services, the
old enemies are still not far behind. While there is no denying that hygienic standards have risen, the improvement
has often been counteracted bv increased mass production of food and the greater popularitv of
eating out, so that a slip by one careless individual can have far-reaching and even disastrous consequences.
It is the policy of the Public Health Department to visit as many food establishments as possible, educating
the proprietors and staff in hygiene matters, and prosecuting onlv when all else has failed. Only by such cooperation
can the best results be achieved, and the general public can improve the protection thus given to
them by complaining when they find unsatisfactory standards. Typhoid itself is fortunatelv rare, and the
one or two cases which occur annually have been successfully limited by routine measures. The main problem
in this kind of situation is to maintain a balance between strict control and the avoidance of public
alarm. An instance of the latter occurred during the year in which a case, which was being investigated in