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To His Worship the Mayor, the Aldermen, and Councillors
of the County Borough of East Ham.
Gentlemen.
I beg to present the Annual Report on the state of the public
health and record of sanitary work carried out during the year
1919.
The report to the Education Committee is also included, together
with an account of the work carried out in connection with
the medical inspection of school children, School Clinic, Tuberculosis
Dispensary, and Maternity and Child Welfare Centre.
The chief need now is for better housing conditions. During
the past five years much property hats been neglected, and
some of the houses are in a deplorable condition. There is also
a large amount of overcrowding in the Borough—two or three
families living in a house provided for only one family. The
large increase in the number of infectious diseases is due to this
fact, but until more houses are provided this will continue. The
accommodation at the Isolation Hospital is insufficient to cope
with this increase, and as a consequence the wards have been
overcrowded. I recommended the enlargement of the Hospital
in 1914 and plans were prepared, but owing to the war this was
not proceeded with. It is urgent that this should now be done
as soon as possible.
The provision of accommodation for cases of Tuberculosis
has been unsatisfactory, but the. Harts Sanatorium at Woodford
will prove an invaluable addition to the measures directed against
T uberculosis.
I am pleased to report good progress in regard to Maternity
and Child Welfare, the success of which depends on the tact and
interest of those engaged in the work. Difficulty has been experienced
in connection with the supply of milk, but this has been
met by the supply of dried milk at cost price. The Day
Nurseries have been tiken over by the Corporation, but owing to
unsuitable accommodation the best results have not yet been
obtained. The voluntary committee who originally started the
nurseries deserve full credit for their assistance.
I would like to note the terrible overcrowding on the District
Railway during early mornings and evenings. This must be a
cause of a great deal of ill-health in the. Borough, besides being
a factor in the spread of communicable disease.
I again wish to express my thanks to the Chairman and
Members of the Committee for their support and sympathetic
consideration of the proposals brought forward for the improvemerit
of conditions relating to the health of the inhabitants of the
Borough, and also to the staff for their support.
I am, Gentlemen,
Your obedient Servant,
W. BENTON,
Medical Officer of Health.
Town Hall, East Ham, E. 6.
April, 1920.