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 1946
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for East Ham]
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45
There was a waiting list at the nurseries practically all during
the year.
The staffing problem for wardens still persisted.
Statistics for 1946 are shown below:—
| Nursery. | Total Attendances. | Daily Average* | Daily Average† (excluding Saturdays) |
|---|---|---|---|
| School Road | 11,793 | 39 | 47 |
| Roman Road | 16,415 | 54 | 65 |
| St. Stephen's Road | 17,445 | 57 | 69 |
| Wall End/Caledon Road. | 11,979 | 39 | 48 |
*Including Saturdays, average attendance based on 365 days, less Sundays (52),
and Statutory Bank Holidays (11), when Nurseries were closed = 302 days.
† Excluding Saturdays (302 days, less 52 = 250).
INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
The quarterly returns to the Registrar General were as follows:—
| Disease | Qtr. ending 31-3-46 | Qtr. ending 30-6-46 | Qtr. ending 30-9-46 | Qtr. ending 31-12-46 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scarlet Fever | 63 | 47 | 33 | 50 | 193 |
| Whooping Cough | 63 | 99 | 68 | 28 | 258 |
| Measles | 8 | 521 | 239 | 47 | 815 |
| Diphtheria | 3 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 19 |
| Pneumonia | 26 | 26 | 22 | 23 | 97 |
| Dysentery | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| Erysilpelas | 9 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 25 |
| Cerebro-Spinal Fever | 5 | — | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| Puerperal Pyrexia | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 8 |
| Ophthalmia Neonatorum | — | — | 1 | — | 1 |
| Malaria | 1 | 2 | — | — | 3 |
It will be seen that the incidence of measles was greater in the 2nd
and 3rd quarters.
Zymotic Death Rate.
The deaths from the seven principal Zymotic diseases (Smallpox,
Whooping Cough, Measles, Diphtheria, Diarrhoea, Scarlet Fever and
Enteric Fever) during the year numbered 8.
Note.—The 8 deaths all occurred from from Diarrhoea.
The death rate was 0.07 per 1,000 population, as compared with
a rate of 0.09 for 1945.
No cases of Smallpox were reported during the year under review.
The Zymotic death rates, per 1,000 population since 1942, are
enumerated below:—
1942 1943 1944 1945 1946
0.17 0.15 0.07 0.09 0.07