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APPENDIX I.
PRELIMINARY MEMORANDUM BY THE MEDICAL
OFFICER OF HEALTH CONCERNING THE
LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT AS IT AFFECTS THE
PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE.
The Local Government Act does not come into operation until
April 1st, 1930, and many of the details and part of the Council's
policy concerning the transfer of the Poor Law functions have not
yet been decided upon. I feel, however, that it is incumbent upon
me to set out certain information which may prove of value in subsequent
deliberations upon the matter.
The main object of this Act is to consolidate and co-ordinate
the whole of the social services. At present identical services are
being rendered by Local Authorities and by Poor Law Authorities
with consequent overlapping and ofttimes definite hardship upon
certain of the populace.
Under the Act the Public Health Service must absorb all the
functions of the Poor Law Medical Services, and thus become
responsible for all public medical services provided under
Statute. This, of course, includes the maintenance and management
(wholly, jointly, or separately) of the existing public institutions
under the Guardians, and it would appear that if the spirit
and object of the whole Act is to be perpetuated these institutions
should come preferably wholly under one administration.
The institutions which must be transferred from the West
Ham Poor Law Authority are:—
Name of Institution.
Type of Accommodation.
*Whipps Cross Hospital Acute cases and shelters for
male Tuberculous cases.
*Forest House Aged men and mental cases.
*Forest House Cottages Aged married couples, at
present occupied by aged
women.
Central Home Chronic sick and able-bodied.
Forest Gate Sick Home Maternity patients, mental
cases and aged sick.
Children's (Aldersbrook) Healthy children.
and Scattered Homes
Margate Convalescent Home Convalescent children.
* All within one curtilage.
On the 1st April of this year, out of a total of some 4,000 inmates
of the above institutions over 2,000 were domiciled in West
Ham; detailed classification of these showed that about 50 per
cent. were in need of institutional treatment because of some illness
or infirmity.
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