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 1937
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for West Ham]
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In Table VIII. the illegitimate births are allocated by sex
to the different wards of the borough. Owing to certain registration
difficulties it has not been possible to allocate in this way all
the births accepted by the Registrar-General as illegitimate, and
those which have not been so allocated are shown.
Stillbirths. The number of stillbirths registered during the
year 1937 was 223, of which 123 were males and 100 females. The
inward and outward transfers are shown in Table XIII. (supplied
by the Registrar-General), and the actual stillbirths allocated to
the borough consisted of 80 males and 65 females, making a total
of 145. Compared with 1936, this represents a decrease of one
male and four female stillbirths.
Table XIII. Stillbirth transfers, 1937.
| Still births registered. | Inward transfers. | Outward transfers. | Still births allocated to borough (1937) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total stillbirths | ||||
| (legitimate and | ||||
| illegitimate): | ||||
| Males | 123 | 7 | 50 | 80 |
| Females | 100 | 2 | 37 | 65 |
| Total | 223 | 9 | 87 | 145 |
| Illegitimate | ||||
| stillbirths: | ||||
| Males | 2 | — | — | |
| Females | 5 | — | 1 | 4 |
| Total | 7 | — | 1 | 6 |
The stillbirth rate per total (live and still) births for 1937
was 33.5, as compared with a rate of 34.6 for the previous year.
The rate for 1937 may also be expressed as 0.56 per 1,000 of the
population at all ages. Of the 145 stillbirths allocated to the
borough, 6—or 4.1 per cent.-—were illegitimate. Further details
regarding the notification and investigation of stillbirths are given
in the section dealing with maternity and child welfare.
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