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Home Help Service
The number of Home Helps employed at the end of the year was 121, but as many of these
were only part-time it was the equivalent of 72 full-time workers.
With the increasing number of elderly people in the population, from whom come a large
proportion of the requests for assistance, added to the difficulties of recruitment, it is most unlikely
that the supply of persons for this type of employment will ever meet the demand, and the main
effort has to be directed to dealing with the most necessitous cases.
The standard charge for this service was 4/9d. per hour, and all persons unable or unwilling
to pay this are assessed in accordance with the Council's scale; any appeals against such assessment
are referred to the Assessment, Appeals and Arrears Sub-Committee. Cases of toxaemia of
pregnancy have a free service during the period of toxaemia, and recipients of National Assistance
are allowed a nil assessment.
A summary of the number of households provided with help during the year is given below.

Tuberculosis—Care and After Care
The facilities previously provided have been continued with the services of the welfare officer
shared with the London Borough of Ealing. There has been close co-operation between the
physicians at the Chest Clinic, the health visitors and other members of the Health and Welfare
Department staff.
The year was a difficult one as the welfare officer was on sick leave for three and a half
months and this coincided with changes in the clerical staff, but the welfare work was continued
during this period, although on a somewhat restricted basis. During the year 237 cases were dealt
with by the welfare officer, and of these 114 were tuberculous and 123 non-tuberculous; of the
non-tuberculous cases 54 were carcinoma and 69 chronic bronchitis and other conditions. The
housing problem was still very much to the fore and 23 cases of housing difficulty were referred for
investigation. Help from the National Assistance Board with clothing, extra nourishment and
maintenance, etc., was given to 31 cases. A considerable amount of help was given to patients
this year by the National Society for Cancer Relief who donated a total of £548, an increase of
£141 over 1964. A donation of £25 from the Metropolitan Hospital Fund was distributed among
27 patients at Christmas time, and toys were obtained from the Evening News Toy-for-a-SickChild-Fund
and these were distributed to sick children and the children of poor patients. Following
requests from the chest physician, recuperative holidays were arranged for eight patients.
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