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
West Ham 1928
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for West Ham]
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Hospital Accommodation.
The Council does not possess a Municipal Hospital for
Maternity or Infant Work, but agreements have been made
whereby subsidies are granted to Queen Mary's Hospital, Stratford;
St. Mary's Hospital, Plaistow; and Plaistow Maternity
Hospital, for the treatment of such cases.
The Forest Gate Sick Home, belonging to the West Ham
Guardians, has a Maternity Block where a large number of women
are confined.
Orthopoedic work is carried on at the Children's Hospital, Balaam Street, Plaistow.
| Maternity Wards. | No. of beds | No. of cases | Weeks spent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Queen Mary's Hospital | 10 | 430 | 777 |
| 2. Plaistow Maternity Charity | 10 | 560 | 1224 |
| 1. St. Mary's Hospital, E.13 | 10 | 247 | 730 |
| 2. Children's Hospital, Balaam St., | |||
| E.13 (Orthopoedic) | 10 | 28 | 142 |
Number of children under 5 years in Homes and Hospitals
outside the Borough, 80.
Number of weeks spent in such Homes, 397.
Average length of stay per child, 4.9 weeks.
List of complaints for which children under 5 years were
treated at St. Mary's Hospital, and at the Children's Hospital,
Balaam Street:—
| Abscess | 4 | Enteritis | 35 |
| Accident (shock) | 2 | Fits | 1 |
| Appendicitis | 2 | Foreign Body in Eye | 1 |
| Bronchitis | 24 | Flypaper Poisoning | 1 |
| Broncho-Pneumonia | 13 | Fractured— | |
| Burns | 3 | Skull | 1 |
| Cellulitis | 2 | Femur | |
| Chorea | 3 | Glands of Neck | 1 |
| Cleft Palate | 1 | Heart Disease | 1 |
| Colitis | 3 | Hernia, inguinal, etc. | 15 |
| Concussion | 3 | Hypostasis | 1 |
| Constipation | 1 | Imperforate Anus | 1 |
| Convulsions | 2 | Injury to— | |
| Corneal Ulcers | 3 | Eye | 2 |
| Cut Forehead | 1 | Head | 1 |
| Cyst | 1 | Finger | 1 |
| Eczema | 1 | Leg | i |
| Empyema | 1 | Intussusception | 2 |