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W. Bullwinkle, of 48, Station Road, Harrow (Tel. No. Harrow 5600).
By the provisions of Part III of the National Assistance Act it is the
duty of the County Council to provide: (a) residential accommodation
for persons who, by reason of age, infirmity, or other circumstances, are in
need of care and attention which is not otherwise available to them ;
and (b) temporary accommodation for persons who are in urgent need
of it. The Authority has also the power and to such an extent as the
Minister may direct, the duty to provide specialised welfare services for
the blind, deaf, dumb and other handicapped persons. For administrative
purposes the County is divided into the same ten areas as for
the County Council's functions under the National Health Service Act.
Acting under the supervision of the Chief Welfare Officer there is a Welfare
Officer in each area, the one for this district being Mr. H. G. Plummer,
48, Station Road, Harrow (Tel. No. Harrow 1252).
AMBULANCE SERVICE
The ambulance service maintained by the County Council is run in
association with the fire service.
Ambulances for the removal of accident cases are housed in or
adjacent to Fire Stations (Tel. Nos. Harrow, Pinner, Byron, Wordsworth,
Grimsdyke, Underbill 2222); those for sick persons are to be placed
as close as possible to main hospitals, including the isolation hospitals.
LABORATORY SERVICE
The examination of clinical material of public health significance
is carried out free of cost to the patient and to the doctor at the Central
Public Health Laboratory, Colindale Avenue, London, N.W.9 (Tel. No.
Colindale 6041 and 4081). Most samples submitted are throat swabs for
the presence of organisms of diphtheria or of the haemolytic streptococcus.
Another group of samples is of dejecta for the presence of organisms of
the typhoid or dysentery group. Specimens of sputa are submitted for
examination for the presence of tubercle bacillus. Blood serum is sent
for examination of the reaction indicating the infection of the body by
the typhoid group. Cough plates are examined for the presence of the
organisms of whooping cough. In general the examination is carried
out of material which will be of aid in the early diagnosis of infectious
conditions, one purpose of the laboratory being to carry out investigations
of public health significance.
It is not intended that other clinical material shall be sent, this
work being carried out at the laboratories of certain hospitals. The
laboratory does not deal in the ordinary way with the examination of
specimens of those suspected to be suffering from venereal disease, which
are sent to hospitals which provide clinics for the treatment of those
suffering from these diseases.
Apart from the examination of this clinical material, the laboratory
also carries out the routine bacteriological examination of such foods as
milk or ice-cream, and examines other food stuffs considered possibly to
have been the source of a food poisoning. The staff of the laboratory
also carry out investigations in the field in the case of various forms of
outbreak, however spread.