London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Harrow 1971
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Harrow]
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The domiciliary midwives work in pairs and have a duty roster
system, which operates to the mutual advantage of patients and staff.
Night calls continued to be passed to the appropriate midwives by the
switchboard staff of Harrow Hospital, which was of great assistance in
maintaining an efficient service.
The table indicates the amount and type of work undertaken by the nurses.
| 1970 | 1971 | |
|---|---|---|
| (1) Total number of persons nursed during the year | 2,265 | 2,374 |
| (2) Number of persons under 5 years old at first visit | 53 | 33 |
| (3) Number of persons 65 years or over at first visit | 1,613 | 1,690 |
| (4) Total number of visits made during the year | 74,365 | 81,056 |
| (5) Number of visits of over one hour's duration | 3,168 | 2,215 |
| (6) New cases referred during the year | 1,508 | 1,634 |
| Category | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medical | |||
| Surgical | |||
| Infectious diseases | |||
| Tuberculosis | |||
| Maternal complication | – | ||
A large number of the visits are solely for the bathing of patients, a
task which can be carried out by less skilled staff working under the
supervision of the home nurse. The number of auxiliary nurses employed
to carry out these ancillary duties was increased to three during the year.
Liaison with General Practioners and full Attachment to Group Practices
New liaison and attachment schemes between the community
nursing staff and general practices developed in all parts of the Borough
during the year proved to be most beneficial by giving an improved
service to the patients of all the practices concerned. At the same time the
staff have enjoyed the increase in depth of work possible in group attachment
and this fact in itself has given a much higher degree of job
satisfaction leading in turn to a better service to the community.