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
Walthamstow 1959
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Walthamstow]
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44
Miss E. Williams, Superintendent of the Home, contributes
the following report:-
"The table below summarises our work for the year. All these are new cases, and do not include the follow-up work arising from 1958 cases. The age group of the mothers is usually 16 - 19 years. We endeavour to place the very young (15 years) in our Maternity Home at Coggeshall.
| Admitted | Adults | Babies | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| From Walthamstow | 17 | 9 | 26 |
| From rest of County | 63 | 40 | 103 |
| From outside County | 6 | 2 | 8 |
| Totas | 86 | 51 | 137 |
| Outdoor Work | |||
| Walthamstow (Mothers and babies) | 35 | 26 | 61 |
| Other County cases | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| From outside County | 2 | - | 2 |
| Totals | 40 | 28 | 68 |
In addition to the seventeen Walthamstow mothers admitted
to the Home, Miss Williams made arrangements for ten others to
enter homes elsewhere in the County.
CARE OF ILLEGITIMATE CHILDREN
Every possible step has, as in previous years, been taken to
ensure that the care of illegitimate children does not fall below
that given to children who are legitimate. The figures quoted
below give a comparison between illegitimate and legitimate
rates.
ILLEGITIMATE BIRTHS AND MORTALITY
| Year | Live Births | Infant Deaths | Death Rates per 1,000 Live Births | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Legitimate | Illegitimate | Legitimate | I1legitimate | Legitima te | I1legitimate | ||
| 1955 | 1,262 | 49 | 25 | 2 | 19.8 | 40.8 | |
| 1956 | 1,335 | 53 | 26 | Nil | 19.4 | Nil | |
| 1957 | 1,267 | 58 | 30 | 2 | 23.6 | 34.4 | |
| 1958 | 1, 247 | 50 | 20 | Nil | 15.4 | Nil | |
| 1959 | 1,389 | 51 | 24 | 3 | 17.2 | 58.8 | |