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IV.—CAUSES OF SICKNESS.
The special causes of sickness and invalidity are those resulting
from miserable environment and adulterated and dirty food.
The insufficiency of present methods for preventing infectious
disease, in particular non-notifiable diseases in infancy and childhood,
naturally results in enfeebled constitutions unable at any
time to combat any additional stress. The high number of deaths
from cancer, heart diseases, bronohitis, and the pneumonias is
evidence of this, and it is worthy of note that there were 25 cases
of suicide among Hackney residents during the year.
V.—SUMMARY OF NURSING ARRANGEMENTS,
HOSPITALS, AND OTHER INSTITUTIONS AVAILABLE
FOR THE DISTRICT.
Professional Nursing in the Home—
(a) General.—This is carried out in the Borough by the King's
Home for Nurseswhoemploy a staff, including the Superintendent,
of 12 trained nurses who attend at the houses of the sick, at such
times as are necessary, to carry out skilled nursing.
(b) For Infectious Diseases.—Arrangements made between
the King's Home and the Borough Council for nursing selected
cases of infectious disease, the agreed working being as follows:—
1. Nursing assistance is granted under the Maternity and
Child Welfare scheme in cases of Ophthalmia Neonatorum, Puerperal
Fever, Measles and German Measles, Whooping Cough,
Epidemic Diarrhoea and Polio-Myelitis.
One half of the money expended under this head is returned
by the Ministry of Health.
Except as regards Ophthalmia Neonatorum and Puerperal
Fever no attempt is made to grant routine nursing assistance to
any but emergency cases; by emergency I mean that only where
representation is made by a member of my staff or by medical