View report page

To the Chairman and Members of the Chigwell
Urban District Council
THE CHAIRMAN AND MEMBERS,
I have pleasure in presenting the Annual Report of the Medical
Officer of Health for the year 1970, which includes the Annual Report of
the Chief Public Health Inspector. This Report is compiled in accordance
with the Public Health Regulations.
1970 was the year in which much was said and written about the
shortcomings of our social and physical environment: Our social surroundings
are said to be characterised by increasing crime and delinquency, addiction
to alcohol, tobacco and other more harmful drugs; our physical environment
to be poisoned by polluted air and water, intolerable noise, tasteless and
adulterated food - all endured in "an urban wilderness of grey concrete
blocks, devoid of community." It is well that we should be kept constantly
aware of these hazards to our well-being; but it is also incumbent upon each
and every individual to play his part on the side of the angels by adopting
and encouraging higher standards of personal conduct and effort rather than
indulging in futile protests and demonstrations against "the Authorities".
The environment and "the Authorities" are, in fact, ourselves, and can only
be influenced by the efforts of individual people. Although much remains
to be done, and new problems are continually arising, much has already been
achieved: Deaths from infectious disease are almost a thing of the past;
we have abundant clean, safe water to drink; fog is rare, and the beauty
of London's buildings can be seen again; our own local records of
atmospheric pollution show a decrease in the amount of smoke by two-thirds
and the amount of sulphur dioxide by one half, over the past 10 years;
our clearance of slums is almost complete. All this has been achieved
by the determination, encouragement and civilised behaviour of people in
general during their everyday work and lives. To my mind, conservation
means nothing more than the continuation, or the revival, of these standards.
The government's proposals for the future Reorganisation of Local
Government and of the National Health Service, were the subject of much
study and thought during the year, and the implications were widely discussed,
A further review, which is still in progress, followed the change of
government in June, 1970, and I find it pleasing to note the changed
tendency in favour of smaller though viable areas of local government, and
towards a unification of the National Health Services.
VITAL STATISTICS
The steady fall in the birth-rate observed in recent years appears
to have been arrested, but the present rate for the District (after adjustment
for age/sex differences) at 12.3 per 1,000 of the population is still well
below the national average, which is 16.0.
The death rate (adjusted) has fallen from 9.3 per 1,000 to 7.9,
mainly due to less deaths from cancer, coronary heart disease and chronic
bronchitis. (The average comparable rate for England and Wales remains
virtually unchanged at 11.7). The death rate of infants under 1 year was
13 per 1,000 live births, compared with the national average figure of 18
for England and Wales.
-3- /On