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46
CHEST CLINICS
In February, the N.E. Metropolitan Regional Hospital Board informed
the Council that the Secretary of State for Social Services had approved
the Board's recommendations to integrate the chest clinics in Hackney and
Tower Hamlets into the London Chest Hospital. The two chest clinics in
Hackney affected would be the Metropolitan chest clinic, scheduled for
closure and transfer in April, 1972 and the Shoreditch chest clinic,
scheduled for September 1972.
The Health Committee had discussed this reorganisation of chest
services in 1970 and had recommended that the Council were unable to
support the proposed centralisation of chest clinic services for East
London until such time as adequate transport facilities were provided
to and from the London Chest Hospital and St.Ann's Hospital, Tottenham,
which many Hackney residents would, in fact, find it easier to reach.
The Council's Planning and Highways Committee also made representations
to the London Transport Executive on the question of the public transport
in this connection.
The N.E. Metropolitan Regional Hospital Board in their reply stated
that the question of patients' travelling had been taken into consideration
but it was considered that the very much improved facilities which the
London Chest Hospital would be able to offer, enabling several
investigations or examinations to be carried out at one visit, would
mean that patients would not be required to attend the clinics as
frequently as they did formerly.
The forthcoming closure of the Metropolitan and Shoreditch chest
clinics was therefore arranged to take place in 1972,as planned by the
Regional Hospital Board.
In April, following the implementation of the Local Authority
Social Services Act, 1970,the chest clinic social workers and part-time
clerks employed at the chest clinics were transferred from the Health
Department to the Social Services Department.