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
East Ham 1925
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for East Ham]
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56
It is encouraging to note that the Infant Mortality continues
to decrease.
COMPARATIVE INFANT MORTALITY RATE.
| Birth-rate per 1,000 total population. | Rate per 1,000 Births. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Diarrhoea and Enteritis (under 2 yrs.) | Total deaths under 1 year | ||
| England and Wales | 18.3 | 8.4 | 75 |
| 105 County Boroughs and Great Towns (including London) | 18.8 | 10.8 | 79 |
| 157 Smaller Towns (1921 adjus-ted populations, 20,000—50,000) | 18.3 | 7.6 | 74 |
| London ... | 18.0 | 10.6 | 67 |
| EAST HAM | 17.3 | 5.1 | 53 |
In 1924 the infant mortality rate was 54. The birth-rate was
18.3, and the lower birth-rate in East Ham in 1925 may have a
direct bearing on the lowered death-rate.
Of the 135 infant deaths under the age of one year, 63 occurred
in the first fourteen days of life—the period before the first
visit of the Health Visitor.
Of the 203 children who died in East Ham under five years of
age, only 24 had attended the Clinics, and of the 24 nine attended
once only.
Infectious Diseases.
Infants suffering from certain infectious diseases are treated
in the Borough Hospital.
Twenty-three deaths occurred from Whooping Cough. Unfortunately
many cases of this disease and of Measles, both of
which are very serious factors in the mortality rate among very
young children, have to be nursed in their own homes.