View report page

(1) inform himself as far as practicable respecting all
matters affecting or likely to affect the public health
in the district and be prepared to advise the local
authority on any such matter:
(5) as soon as practicable after the 31st day of December in
each year make an annual report to the local authority
for the year ending on that date on the sanitary circumstances,
the sanitary administration, and the vital
statistics of the district, containing in addition to
any other matters upon which he may consider it desirable
to report, such information as may from time to time be
required by the Minister, and furnish the Minister with
as many copies of the report as the Minister may from
time to time require:
Thus by parliamentary regulation I am required to report to you
matters of importance which I observe as your medical officer and
which affect the health of the population of the Borough. It is a
tenet universally accepted that the medical officer in his Annual
Report may express himself freely about matters and circumstances
which may be detrimental to the health of the inhabitants. So long
as this reporting is honest, and scientifically and medically accurate,
he should be free to do it without fear or favour, or interference.
The pattern of social life is constantly changing; as are also
the manners and customs of our young people; and the state of dependency
of our old people. It is vitally necessary that we keep these matters
under constant review, and if need be, be ready at all times to change
our policy in the light of changing circumstances; at the same time
we must watch that we do not duplicate services provided by other
bodies such as the hospitals or practitioners or by other departments
of the local authorities.
In last year" s report I commented on the volume of disability,
infirmity and malnutrition in older people. As the ageing population
increases, this volume is growing to tremendous proportions, and
infirmity continues to rise. Another year's work in the experimental
clinic for preventive medicine for older people has proved beyond
question the existence of a group of disabilities in older people
which I have termed the multiple deficiency syndrome of later life.
It is a mixture of pathological ageing incorporating deficiency of
intake and absorption of adequate foods, deterioration in the
supply of hormones from the endocrine glands; and a general deficiency
of certain minerals and vitamins which appear to be needed in
greater quantity in later life. Much of this deterioration can be
prevented; in preventing it we would raise the efficiency and
working capacity of our older population; we would relieve the
burden of invalid old persons on their younger relatives; we would
save money on hospital beds, home helps and home nurses, and on
the calls on practitioners.
Middlesex County Council have approved plans for more prevention
clinics for older people throughout the County - a wonderful step
3