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2,
To the MAYOR, ALDERMEN AND COUNCILLORS of the METROPOLITAN BOROUGH OF
SHOREDITCH.
Mr.Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Except for containing more detail of the individual sections of the
Department's various spheres of activity than usual, the annual report follows
the same line as that laid down by the Minister of Health for several years
past.
Both the Health and Welfare Committees remained the same as in 1959, with
the exception that the Mayors for the two years alternated between being " exofficio"
members and normal members. The changes in staff were confined to
the Public Health Inspectorate, in that Mr.D.Grant retired from the post of
Chief Public Health Inspector after having done most noble work for.Shoreditch
since 1920 - a fact which no words of mine could adequately cover - and was
replaced in that post by his equally enthusiastic Deputy, Mr.T.H.Marshall.
MrJ).A.Lambden came in from a senior post at East Ham as Deputy in Mr .Marshall' s
place, and three Inspectors found work nearer their own homeB, thus leaving
our district and food inspectorate in the most parlous state possible (so
serious did the position become that we even had to defer extension of the
smoke control areas.)
Despite these difficulties, I am glad to be able to report that the vital
statistics of the Borough remained remarkably good in that the adjusted birth
rate rose from 12.51 to 14.33 the still-birth rate improved from 27.73 to
11.71, the infant mortality rate improved from 26.84 to 22.22, the neo-natal
rate improved from 16.77 to 14.81 and, best of all, the perinatal mortality
rate improved from 44.04 to 24.89 (not that there was any direct bearing
between these facts.) Unfortunately, there was one maternal death (a selfinduced
abortion) and the adjusted death rate for the whole population increased
slightly. The infantile mortality rate would have improved even more
had it not been for the fact that the illegitimate death rate increased
enormously from 22.22 to 68.95 (legitimate rate improved from 27.22 to 17.85).
Among the causes of death there were very few changes of note. There were,
however, two deaths - aged over 75 - from what we hope is the relic of a bygone
age, syphilis, (unless Shoreditch youth becomes as careless and promiscuous
as alleged in other parts of this and other countries) one schoolchild and one
over 65 died from unusual meningococcal infection, the reduction of 5 in deaths
from cancer of the lung was countered by a similar increase in stomach cancer,
leukaemia killed 5 against a nil return in the previous year, strokes more than
doubled and coronary disease increased slightly (these latter seemed to confirm
that the victims were generally overpowered by the worries of life.)Otherwise,
deaths from influenza and accidents for instance, were lower than average.
Notifications of infectious diseases were little more than half compared
with 1959, measles being only one-sixth as frequent, though dysentery doubled
despite our constant reminders about the importance of hand washing before
handling food and after toilet I Whooping cough jumped from 3 to 113 despite
the proved value of immunisation, but fortunately polio dropped from 3 to 2
cases, and no diphtheria occurred. Tuberculosis caused one more death than
last year's record low, but notifications were reduced although the Mass
Miniature Radiography Unit found rather more than previously.