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11
To:
THE MAYOR, ALDERMEN AND COUNCILLORS OF
THE LONDON BOROUGH OF BROMLEY.
Mr. Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I present my report on the health and welfare of the Borough
for the year 1966. This is my second annual report for the Borough
and is set out according to the requirements of the Ministry of
Health Circular No. 1/66.
The various sections of the report show in detail the multiplicity
of services that have been provided first to evaluate the
health of the population at all ages, second to advise the Authority
on measures for prevention and promotion of health, and third
to carry out to this end the general policy and directions of the
Council.
Community Care Services
A first priority for the establishment of adequate community
care services has been to recruit highly skilled officers. In spite
of a national shortage, this has been accomplished in a difficult
economic climate and with gradually increasing restrictions of
financial stringency.
A comprehensive personal advisory service to match that
already provided by health visitors in the Maternity and Child
Welfare Section has now been developed by the Mental Health
and Social Welfare Sections.
A second priority has been to co-ordinate the statutory services
with the role of voluntary organisations and with the roles of
the Hospital and General Medical Practitioner services. This has
been accomplished by frequent consultation and by sharing
knowledge of plans, and by the attachment of staff to general
medical practices and to hospital staff wherever this has been both
appropriate and practicable.
The appointment of a Co-ordinating Secretary for Social
Services by the Authority has been of great value to the co-ordination
of visits by Social Workers, the arranging of Case Conferences,
of meetings of an Officers Liaison Committee and of records.
A third priority has been to acquire sites and obtain finance
for additional Training Centres, Day Centres, Hostels and Residential
Homes as set out in the Ten Year programme. At first
sight, progress in this direction has been very disappointing since
the difficulty of obtaining sites for new projects has been overtaken
towards the end of the year by a deterioration in our national
economic affairs and a strict rationing of financial resources.
Nevertheless the prudent financial actions that have been taken