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5
REPORT OF THE MEDICAL OFFICER
OF HEALTH.
To the Chairman and Members of the Urban District Council
of Harrow.
Mr. Chairman, Mrs. Leech and Gentlemen,
I beg to submit the Annual Report on the Health and Sanitary
Circumstances of the District for the year 1937.
The demand for clinic services continues to increase, necessitating
the opening of an additional five infant welfare and two antenatal
sessions during the year. Attendances at the infant welfare
centres reached a figure of 71,403 and at the ante-natal clinics of
7,038, the corresponding figures for 1934 being 31,784 and 1,354.
The appointment of additional health visitors enabled more frequent
home visits to be made to toddlers, the number this year being
10,246 as compared with 4,979 in the preceding year. To enable
more to take advantage of the treatment services the scale of
income was amended. In additiqn to benefiting in this way those
in receipt of milk can now be granted amounts exceeding the
previous allowance of one pint. To put into operation the provisions
of the Midwives Act, fifteen midwives acting under a superintendent
were appointed and began their duties on July 19th. A further
application of the Council to erect and maintain a maternity
hospital met with no success, the County Council now being accepted
as the authority to provide institutional maternity accommodation
for this area.
Further groups of insanitary property were dealt with, fourteen
individual houses being the subject of demolition orders and fifty-two
being the subject of eight Clearance Orders. By the transfer of the
tenants to the Glebe and Berridge Estate houses, it is hoped that
shortly all persons living in properties which have been subject to
Demolition Orders will be suitably housed.
Further steps were taken regarding the erection of a clinic at
Kenmore Estate, and in conjunction with the County Council for
combined buildings at Honeypot Lane, Pinner and Malvern Avenue.
No. 76, Marlborough Hill was opened as a temporary clinic to enable
the services previously provided at Tyneholme to be continued
pending the erection of the new central clinic on this site.
The vital statistics for the district are satisfactory, the infant
mortality rate being particularly so.
I have the honour to be,
Mrs. Leech and Gentlemen,
Your obedient servant,
E. W. CARYL THOMAS,
Council Offices, Medical Officer of Health.
Harrow-on-the-Hill.
May 20th, 1938.