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the old home instruction—often acquired unconsciously in other
days—in what might be termed "Home Hygiene." It is in
such cases that Welfare Centres and School Clinics are proving
of inestimable value in imparting education, though the full
results are not apparent at the moment. A glance at the Table
on page 14 will reveal at once that many of the deaths under
one year of age could be prevented by instruction and education,
and few are attributable to congenital debility and malformation.
Every member of the Public Health staff must therefore
regard himself or herself not merely as an agent assisting in
stamping out disease but as a teacher who, should seize every
opportunity of preaching the gospel of health. However accomplished,
whether by a quiet talk to an expectant or nursing
mother at a Welfare Centre, or by a few words to a scholar or
class in schools, or by the wider publicity of lectures or other
means of propaganda, the work must go on.
This teaching at Centres and Clinics by the medical staff,
and in homes by sanitary inspectors and health visitors, has been
supplemented in Wimbledon during the first week of January
1924 by a short "Health Week," held at the Baths Hall, Latimer
Road, under the auspices of the Public Health Committee of
the Borough Council. The exhibition lasted four days, and at
two sessions daily lectures, illustrated by cinema films, were
delivered by medical experts on such subjects as general public
health questions, infectious diseases including tuberculosis,
housing, milk supplies, dental hygiene, and venereal diseases.
An exhibit of Welfare work proved of great attraction, and the
questions which the welfare workers in charge of the exhibit
were asked showed how keenly the public desired information
on health subjects.
Lectures have also been given to parents of children in
certain schools in connection with the routine medical work, and
a special lecture was delivered to all nurses in the district.
During 1923, the general health in the Borough of Wimbledon
has been excellent. Notifiable infectious diseases have
been lower than in preceding years, while the non-notifiable
infectious diseases have not assumed epidemic form. Outbreaks
of measles and whooping cough occurred in two schools and
chicken-pox cases were scattered throughout all schools. Owing
to a prevalence of a ;mild form of small-pox in certain areas in
England, these chicken-pox cases required careful supervision,
but fortunately no case of small-pox occurred. Towards the end
of the year cases of influenza became common and were increasing
in number.
No new measures affecting the work of the Public Health
Department were introduced during the year, but the following
developments are to be noted.
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