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5
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE
MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH
To His Worship the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors of the Borough of
Harrow.
Mr. Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I beg to submit the Annual Report on the Health and Sanitary
Circumstances of the District for the year 1961.
The vital statistics were much those of the previous year, the main
differences being a fall in the infant mortality rate to 18.1 and the unwelcome
rise to 18 in the number of deaths from influenza. No cases of
poliomyelitis were contracted in the district. The rise in the number of
deaths from cancer of the lung which has been a feature of recent years,
was arrested; but not too much comfort can be obtained from this, and
it must be hoped that the interest stirred by the publication of the report
of the Royal College of Physicians on "Smoking and Health" will be
sustained and translated into action which can lead to a checking of the
damage caused by heavy cigarette smoking.
The Public Health Inspectors have continued their routine work,
attending to conditions which were the subject of complaints, carrying
out the examination of carcases of every animal killed at the local
slaughter-houses, keeping a watchful eye on all places in which food is
handled or dealt with in any way. Some progress was made in dealing
with those out-worn houses in the district which are still occupied; this
progress is still impeded by too small numbers of new Council houses
becoming available.
The year saw the coming-into-operation of the district's first Smoke
Control Order; another was confirmed and much of the preparatory
work was done for the introduction of the third order. From what has
been learnt from the work in connection with these orders, and because
additional staff has been engaged, it is hoped that a programme can be
prepared which will see the whole district covered by orders within a few
years. Even in a district such as this where it is not considered the air is
heavily contaminated, the prevention of smoke pollution will undoubtedly
benefit many people susceptible to bronchitis and other inflamatory
conditions of the respiratory system who suffer much in the winter months.
Whatever personal services might be provided or even curative services,
'he health of the district depends primarily on the basic environmental
conditions, the services provided by the District Council, though not
limited to those provided by the staff of the Public Health Department.
When the future of the slaughter-houses in the district was being
considered, both the Planning Committee and the Public Health Committee
hoped that a suitably-sited slaughterhouse could be erected which
would lead to the present ones no longer being used. A suitable site