London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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Twickenham 1934

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Twickenham]

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7
Midwives.
The number of Midwives who declared their intention of practising in the district during
the year was 12. The scheme for the provision of midwives for women in necessitous circumstances
who desired to be confined at home, came into operation during the year. No application for
assistance was received.
Home Helps.
A scheme for the provision of home helps to carry out the domestic duties of women who
were unable to obtain help of this character during labour, the lying-in period or in
consequence of some abnormality of pregnancy was considered and approved.
Nursing Homes.
The Middlesex County Council are the supervising authority for Midwives and for Maternity
and Nursing Homes in the Borough.
The number of Nursing Homes in the Borough at the end of the year was 9.
LEGISLATION IN FORCE.
The adoptive Acts and Bye-Laws which are in force in the Borough, and which have been
set out in detail in previous reports, remained unaltered.
HOSPITALS.
For Smallpox.
The provision of hospital treatment for smallpox is made by the Middlesex County Council
under the " Prevention and Treatment of Smallpox : Regulations, 1928."
For Other Infectious Diseases.
Other infectious diseases were treated at the Hospital, Nelson Road.
In my reports for 1931, 1932 and 1933, reference was made to the consideration which
was being given to the proposal to form a Joint Hospital district to comprise the Boroughs of
Heston and Isleworth, Richmond (Surrey) and Twickenham, together with the Urban Districts
of Hampton, Hampton Wick and Teddington.
The deliberations resulted in a decision to apply for a Provisional order to form a united
district of the County districts mentioned above, for the purpose of maintaining and managing
hospitals for the reception of cases of infectious disease. The provisional order was made and
duly confirmed by the Ministry of Health Provisional Order Confirmation (South Middlesex
and Richmond Joint Hospital District) Act, 1934.
The Joint Board so constituted consists of 19 members, of whom 4 are elected by the
Council of the Borough of Twickenham.
The day on which it was appointed that the Joint Board should take over the hospitals,
was April 1st, 1935.
Admissions.
The total number of admissions to the hospital during the year was 283, the number
admitted during the previous year being 147.
Of the admissions, 136 were cases of Scarlet Fever ; 104 Diphtheria ; and 1 Erysipelas.
Of the remainder, 22 sent in with a diagnosis of Diphtheria, 13 as Scarlet Fever and 1 as Enteric
Fever, were not confirmed on observation.
The greatest number of beds occupied on any one day by cases of Scarlet Fever was 26,
and by cases of Diphtheria 25. The highest total number of occupied beds on any one day was
34.
While, admittedly, the year was a somewhat exceptional one as far as the occurrence
of infectious diseases in Twickenham was concerned, the figures set out above constitute an
effective justification for the proposed increase in the number and the re-organisation of the
provision of hospital beds for infectious disease in the area which will be provided by the new
Joint Hospital Board.

The degree of severity of the cases admitted to hospital is indicated in the following table :—

MildModerateSevereDeaths
Diphtheria6856126
Scarlet Fever436012

The above numbers included cases admitted from Twickenham and other areas.
The number of cases admitted from the Borough of Twickenham was:— Diphtheria, 110;
Scarlet Fever, 81 ; Other, including cases in which the diagnosis was not confirmed on observation,
29; Total 220.