London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
West Ham 1913
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for West Ham]
This page requires JavaScript
32
mittee adopted by the Board would be at £1 per 750 of the
population in respect of the Dispensary £392, and at £90 per
bed in respect of the Sanatorium £10,800, or a total of £11,192,
but when the deputation from the Public Health Committee
attended at Whitehall they were informed that the sum available
for capital grant in West Ham would scarcely exceed £9,000.
If the above assumptions are correct the initial capital outlay on Institutions would be as under:—
| £ | £ | |
|---|---|---|
| Dispensary | 450 | |
| 120 Hospital and Sanatorium beds, at £200 per bed | 24,000 | |
| 24,450 | ||
| 9,000 | ||
| £15,450 |
This sum of £15,450 would be a direct charge upon the
Council's funds.
COST OF MAINTENANCE.
It is difficult to arrive at an accurate estimate of the cost of
maintaining all the Institutions of a fully-developed scheme. The
heavy cost entailed by the opening of Dagenham as a Sanatorium is
an unfair test, and it is proposed, therefore, in this report to
assume that the Council may be ultimately able to reduce its
maintenance charges to a figure nearly commensurate with that
of many similar Institutions. Limiting the present enquiry to
Dispensary, Sanatorium, and Hospital charges, it may safely be
alleged that if the Dispensary is to fully carry out its functions
it must at least be staffed with the Tuberculosis Officer, four
Nurses, and a Clerk, whose combined salaries would presently
amount to £1,000 per annum. Although at first the majority of
patients treated would be insured patients, their number would