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
Sutton 1971
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Sutton]
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DOMICILIARY MIDWIFERY AND HOME NURSING
The Domiciliary Midwifery and Home Nursing Service continued to be operated
from the Nurses Homes at Sutton and Cheam.
During 1971 a Nurses Clinical Centre was built in the grounds of Cheam Nurses
Home and it is anticipated that early in 1972 the service will be centralised in Cheam
with the closure of the Nurses Home in Sutton.
HOME NURSING
The following table gives some indication of the volume of work carried out by the home nurses
| 1971 | 1970 | |
|---|---|---|
| (a) Number of persons nursed | 4488 | 3290 |
| (b) Number of children under 5 years at 1st visit | 115 | 85 |
| (c) Number of persons aged 65 or over 65 1st visit | 2971 | 2186 |
| (d) Number of visits made by home nurses | 151992 | 128253 |
It will be noted that there was a considerable increase in the total number of cases
and visits.
By the end of 1971 all the home nurses were attached to general practitioners.
Laundry Service for Incontinent Patients Nursed at Home
There is a continued demand for the laundry service for incontinent patients both
in the borough of Merton and in Sutton. The service is greatly appreciated both by the
patient and the relatives as well as by the home nurses.
The total number of cases during the year 1971 was as follows
| Total during year | Number of patients on books at end of year. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 1970 | 1971 | 1970 | |
| London Borough of Sutton | 89 | 71 | 42 | 32 |
| London Borough of Merton | 99 | 98 | 48 | 49 |