[Report 1948] / Medical Officer of Health, Cumberland County Council.

  • Cumberland County Council
Date:
1948
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1948] / Medical Officer of Health, Cumberland County Council. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    91/98 (page 91)
    NATIONAL ASSISTANCE ACT, 1948 NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE ACT, 1946 5th Jl'I-y, 194-8, to 31st Dkckmbhk, 1948). Station I'iew House, Penrith. Hiqh field House, Wigton. Meadow \ 'ieiv House IV kite haven. Part HI Hasp. Total Part III Hasp. Total Partin Hasp. Total .\dmission 14 1 16 30 37 44 81 61 94 155 Discharges 19 7 26 35 50 85 76 67 143 Deaths . . — 9 9 11 11 37 37 MEDICAL ATTENTION FOR RESIDENTS. General medical supervision of the Part III establishment.^ is undertaken by the former institution medical officers, who are also medical officers responsible to the Regional Hospital l-loard for the treatment of persons in the accommodation reserved to the Board. Residents have been given the riglit and freedom to choose their own doctor as if they were living in their own homes, and where they select the doctor respons- ible to the committee for the medical supervision of the premises, the matter of capitation fee payable lies between the doctor and the E.xecutive Council appointed under the National Health Service Act, 1940. HOSTELS—Future Provision—Existing Establishments— Upgrading of. The future polic}' is to provide accommodation in estab- lishments of the nature of small homes or hostels for the aged, and ultimately to vacate completely poor law or [lublic assistance and other similar institutions for this class of ])erson. Whether it will be possible to achieve this desirable end, time alone will tell, but at the moment it would seem that it may be necessary to retain one or two small })ublic assistance institutions for the category of persons who could not be considered suitable for accommodation in the small homely hostels. Local authorities have, since the bth July, 1948, been relieved of the burden of {a) domiciliary assistance and medical relief, and [}>) hospital treatment of the chronic sick and mental patients ; whilst on the other hand persons resident in Part HI accommodation have been given financial assistance from exchequer funds to enable them to meet the minimum charge of dl - per week as a contribution towards the cost of their maintenance, h'or these contributions, the Ministry expect higher standards of comfort and amenities in existing institutions until such time as the type of residential hostel envisaged by the Act can be pro\ ided.