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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Comparative figures for the stillbirth rate over a series of
years are given in Table XIV. From this table it will be seen that,
during the ten years for which information regarding stillbirths
is available for West Ham and the country generally, there has
been no significant change in the proportion of stillbirths to total
births. As the numbers concerned are relatively small, yearly
fluctuations are to be expected. It should be noted, however, that
there is a slight relative decrease in the number of stillbirths
which are illegitimate. Rates or proportions for this feature are
apt to be misleading, and they are therefore not given. If the
figures do indicate a real decrease in illegitimate stillbirths, they
may reflect the increased attention which has been given in recent
years to the needs of the unmarried mother.
Table XlV. Still births.
| Year | Legitimate | Illegitimate | Total still births | Rate per 1,000 population | Rate per 1,000 total births | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Males | Females | Males | Females | West Ilam | London | England and Wales | West Ilam | London | England and Wales | ||
| 1927 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0.64* | — | — | 38* |
| 1928 | 97 | 77 | 6 | 7 | 187 | 0.61 | 0.54 | 0.70 | 31 | 32 | 40 |
| 1929 | 97 | 88 | 8 | 2 | 195 | 0.63 | 0.53 | 0.68 | 33 | 32 | 40 |
| 1930 | 107 | 71 | 8 | 4 | 190 | 0.63 | 0.56 | 0.69 | 33 | 34 | 41 |
| 1931 | 107 | 74 | 5 | 1 | 187 | 0.63 | 0.50 | 0.67 | 34 | 32 | 41 |
| 1932 | 82 | 63 | 1 | 3 | 149 | 0.52 | 0.46 | 0.66 | 29 | 31 | 41 |
| 1933 | 84 | 68 | 4 | 9 | 165 | 0.58 | 0.45 | 0.62 | 36 | 33 | 41 |
| 1934 | 78 | 57 | 4 | 1 | 140 | 0.51 | 0.44 | 0.62 | 31 | 31 | 40 |
| 1935 | 58 | 60 | 5 | 2 | 125 | 0.46 | 0.44 | 0.63 | 29 | 32 | 41 |
| 1936 | 79 | 69 | 2 | — | 150 | 0.56 | 0.45 | 0.61 | 35 | 32 | 40 |
| 1937 | 78 | 61 | 2 | 4 | 145 | 0.56 | 0.54 | 0.60 | 33 | 33 | 39 |
* Rates based on figures for half-year only.
Comparative birth rates. The average of the birth rates
for the twenty greattowns shown in Table XXXIX. is 15.2. The
rate for West Ham is considerably above this figure. Six of the
other nineteen towns had a rate higher than that of West Ham.
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