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
Wanstead and Woodford 1955
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Wanstead and Woodford]
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The following table sets out statistically the work of the Health Visitors in the Borough during 1955:—
| Expectant Mothers (first visits) | 138 |
| Expectant Mothers (re-visits) | 42 |
| Infants under one year (first visits) | 671 |
| Infants under one year (re-visits) | 1365 |
| Infants 1 to 5 years (first visits) | 87 |
| Infants 1 to 5 years (re-visits) | 1758 |
| Stillbirth enquiries | 9 |
| Infant Death | 11 |
| Tuberculosis Patients | 855 |
| Aged and Infirm | 60 |
| Day Nursery Applications | 5 |
| School Children | 274 |
| Other Visits | 351 |
| Ineffective Calls | 720 |
| 6346 |
HOME NURSING (Section 25)
The Superintendent of District Nurses, Miss A. Williams, S.R.N.,
S.C.M., Q.I., Hv.Cert., reports as follows:—
The staff employed on general nursing in the Borough consists of
the equivalent of 6£ with the addition of the part-time services of
two male nurses employed in the area.
I am pleased to say that for the first time for a number of years
there are sufficient staff to give a good nursing service in the
Borough, and also to be able to devote more time to the care of the
aged.
The work in the Borough is very mixed, the type of patient consisting
of the acute sick, chronic sick, patients requiring injections,
and with a number of very heavy cases, particularly in the Woodford
district.
The male side of the general nursing work is undertaken by the
two male nurses who are becoming very popular in the Borough.
The staffing position is such that it has been possible this year to
arrange the work more satisfactorily, thereby allowing the nurses
to work more comfortably, and this has proved of benefit both to the
nurses and the patients concerned.
The following statistics show a comparison of the work undertaken
by the District Nurses during the years 1954 and 1955:—
1955 1954
Number of New Cases 617 767
Number of Visits 19760 22184
Last Offices performed 35 33
Advisory or Casual Visits 471 496
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