View report page

5
REPORT OF THE MEDICAL OFFICER
OF HEALTH.
To the Chairman and Members of the Urban District Council
of Harrow.
Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I beg to submit the Annual Report on the Health and Sanitary
Circumstances of the District for the year 1936.
The steady development in the district has necessitated the
opening of additional clinics, a service which is extremely popular.
4,963 attendances were made at the ante-natal clinics, a very large
increase on the figure of 2,370 for the previous year and 1,354 in
1934. The corresponding figures for the attendances at the infant
welfare centres were 59,147, 43,205 and 31,784. The attendances
at the Toddlers' Clinic opened at the Broadway Clinic proved
sufficiently encouraging to justify the opening of similar sessions
in two other parts of the district. Arrangements have been made
for the treatment of minor ailments of those under five years of
age, and the health visiting staff was augmented to enable systematic
home visiting of the Toddlers to be carried out. The home visits
to infants and children under five totalled 10,461 as compared with
figures of 8,687 in 1935 and 5,598 in 1934. The Council became the
Local Supervising Authority of Midwives on October 1st, and so
are responsible for the provision of the midwifery services under
the Midwives Act, 1936. As from November 1st, the powers of
the County Council under the Nursing Homes Registration Act
were delegated to the Council.
The survey of over-crowding begun in December, 1935, continued
until April. 12,934 houses were surveyed, of which 152
proved to be over-crowded. During the year seven groups of
properties totalling 57 houses were represented for clearance and
20 Demolition Orders were made.
Sites were purchased for the erection of clinics for maternity
and child welfare purposes, but by agreement with the County
Council premises will be constructed which will house school
medical and library services in addition. A site was decided upon
for the erection of the isolation hospital; but the position with
regard to the proposed maternity home to be erected jointly with
the Wembley Council is not satisfactory.