[Report 1958] / Medical Officer of Health, Lanark County Council.

  • Lanarkshire (Scotland). County Council.
Date:
1958
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1958] / Medical Officer of Health, Lanark County Council. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    12/256 (page 10)
    The factors which have contributed to the decline, are the following Acts of Parliament—The Midwives Act, 1915, The Maternity Services (Scotland) Act, 1937, and the National Health Service (Scotland) Act, 1947. Other factors are—the Appointment of Health Visitors, 1908, the Cheap Milk Scheme, 1940, the “ Green Ration Book,” 1941-42, and the Report on Infant Mortality in Scotland, 1943, which opened the country’s eyes to the unnecessary waste of infant life which was going on. With all these factors in favour of a minimal infant mortality rate, why is it not being achieved ? Part of the answer, at least, is that far more of the mothers of to-day come from small families, in which there was no opportunity for minding the baby in the way there used to be in the large families of last century. If the mother of to-day is to be given the necessary information, more health visitors are necessary to teach her. During the year, the second stage of the County’s Mass Radio- graphy Campaign took place. The numbers examined exceeded 59,000, and 65 suffering from active tuberculosis were found, together with 377 requiring observation, and 760 persons suffering from other con- ditions. In all, about 150,000 persons resident in the County were examined during the two campaign years. No particular problems were presented by infectious diseases. The numbers notified and confirmed were substantially lower than in the previous year, but deaths were reduced by only a little. There were rather more deaths from pneumonia, but fewrer from influenzal pneu- monia. Tuberculosis accounted for exactly the same number of deaths in each year. So 1958 was a year partly of achievement, and partly of oppor- tunities not fully taken, and the latter has exacted a toll of infant life. This serves to underline the need in Public Health, to seize oppor-j tunities, and never to let go of what is held. Yours faithfully, I. C. Monro, County Medical Officer. County Health Department, Beckford Street, Hamilton, 1st December, 1959.