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

St Saviour's (Southwark) 1896

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for St. Saviour's]

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Table: The subjoined statistics will give some idea as to the sanitary condition of these dwellings:—

The subjoined statistics will give some idea as to the sanitary condition of these dwellings:—

1896Mowbray Bldgs.St. Saviour's less Mowbray Bldgs.
General death-rate per 1,00048.52l.l
Zymotic death-rate per 1,000ll.72.2
Respiratory system20.57.3

Table: The following is a general classification of the causes of death in the district in the form of a percentage of deaths from various classes of disease to the total deaths.

The following is a general classification of the causes of death in the district in the form of a percentage of deaths from various classes of disease to the total deaths.

Zymotic diseases15.57
Dietetic „.17
Constitutional diseases22.30
Developmental „12.38
Local ,,
Nervous system9.38
Circulatory „7.25
Respiratory „18.76
Digestive „6.72
Glands.17
Urinary „3.00
Bones and joints.17
Violent deaths3.89
Ill-defined.17

Text

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It will be seen from the above that the percentage of
deaths from Zymotic diseases is 15.57 compared with that for
the whole of London of 19.03.
It has always been my endeavour in dealing with these
diseases to remove as far as possible all cases for which hospital
accommodation is provided to such institutions, which accounts
for our very favourable death-rate from these diseases as compared
with the rest of London. In the early years of the
Infectious Diseases Notification Act it was frequently a matter
of difficulty, without resorting to extreme measures, to induce
parents to allow their children to go to hospital, but thanks to
the admirable way in which the hospitals under the Metropolitan
Asylums Board are administered that difficulty has
practically disappeared; and it is a matter of common occurrence
to find parents as soon as they are aware that their child
is suffering from an infectious disease to come and ask to have
it removed to hospital. To the kindness and consideration, not
to speak of the admirable treatment which these little ones
receive in these institutions, I gratefully bear testimony. The
most unfavourable feature in these percentages is caused by
the number of deaths which would come under the heading of