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PREFACE
To the Chairman and Members of the
Carshalton Urban District Council
Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I have the honour to present my Annual Report on the health of the
district for the year 1963.
The Registrar-General's estimate of the home population at 56,020
indicates that the outward drift of the population still exceeds inward
migration and the natural increase.
The vital statistics provide evidence that the favourable trend in public
health continues. The death rate, although inevitably increasing slightly
with the ageing of the population, is still below the national rate, whilst
infant mortality at approximately half that for the country as a whole,
is much the lowest recorded in the history of the district. One death was
ascribed to maternal causes according to the rules of the International
Classification of Causes of Death, although the Coroner's Pathologist held
the view that the pregnancy played no part in the fatality.
Cancer of the lung continues to be of increasing concern, a record
high total of 45 deaths from this cause having occurred in the district during
the year. This is all the more regrettable since much of the remedy lies in
the hands of the cigarette smoking public.
Apart from the expected biennial visitation of measles in epidemic
form, the incidence of notifiable infectious disease was again generally low.
This low prevalence was of course particularly noticeable in those diseases
against which effective immunisation procedures have been devised. Poliomyelitis
is now coming under the same degree of control as diphtheria and
for the fourth year in succession no case was notified. Progress in the
preparation of a measles vaccine appears to be making headway and it would
seem to be only a question of time before a successful prophylactic procedure
becomes available. The number of new cases of tuberculosis and the total
on the register continue to fall, both being only half what they were 10
years ago.
The sanitary inspectorate, under the skilled guidance of Mr. Surfleet,
maintained the high standard of inspection and supervision of environmental
conditions, housing and food. New legislation will give additional
valuable powers to establish and maintain higher standards for houses let
in multiple occupation and for working conditions in offices.
Steady progress is being made in dealing with unfit dwellings which
while not being numerous present a problem from the point of view of
rehousing the occupants who are to be displaced. But for this difficulty
progress could have been more rapid.
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