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6
Metropolitan Borough of Hackney
REPORT OF THE MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH
FOR THE YEAR 1948
Public Health Department,
Town Hall, Hackney, E.8.
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors
of the Metropolitan Borough of Hackney.
This Report on the health of the Borough in 1948 has been
prepared in the form requested during the war and subsequent
years by the Ministry of Health.
In my Report for 1947 I drew attention to the unprecedented
difficulties which had been experienced by the Public Health
Department as a result of the war, and had continued until the
autumn of that year, but I am happy to say that, due to the easing
of the situation as regards supply of materials, labour and staff,
the improvement noted towards the end of 1947 continued during
1948. The effects of war damage, however, and lack of ordinary
maintenance to dwelling houses during the war years still placed
a greater strain upon the Public Health Department than during
the pre-war years and more following-up of cases and legal
proceedings were required to get work done than before the war.
During the war the general standard of food inspection, the
supervision of food premises and the conditions under which
foods were sold did not receive the attention which would have
been considered essential in more favourable circumstances. At
the close of the war the work of the Department was necessarily
directed towards the appalling conditions resulting from housing
deterioration and the destruction due to war damage, while the
shortage of trained staff, referred to in my previous report,
necessitated transferring the services of one of the food inspectors