Health Committee's report / City of Melbourne.

  • Melbourne (Vic.). Health Committee.
Date:
[1947]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Health Committee's report / City of Melbourne. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    5/42 page 1
    REPORT OF THE MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH Health Department, Town Hall Chambers, Melbourne. 16th June, 1948. The Chairman and Members, Health Committee. Gentlemen, I have the honour to present my report for the year 1947. The health of the community has continued to be reasonably satisfactory, and the pre¬ valence of infectious diseases to be low and without any epidemic outbreaks. A similar state of affairs appears to prevail elsewhere in Australia and, though conditions of post-war privation continue to exist in many parts of Europe, and probably, too, in parts of Asia, there have been n3 reports of the development of hazards, apart from that of war, likely to threaten the health of distant peoples. It is well recognised, nevertheless, that even in the most fortunate communities the health of the people is far from any ideal and that medical science falls far short of a complete under¬ standing of, and capacity to deal with, many of the existing health risks and problems; and in accord with this there is evidence m many parts of the world of an increasing interest in and development of medical research, with the foundation of new institutes, travelling scholarships and studentships and much inter-change of scholars. During the year I had the privilege of visiting and spending four months in Great Britan after 28 years absence. I was welcomed with special kindness and consideration as an Austra¬ lian. and saw something and heard much of the development of Public Health in the principal country of its origin. As delegate of the University of Melbourne I attended the Congress of the Royal Sanitary Institute at Torquay, held from June 2nd to June 7th, at which were present over 2,500 delegates, including the Principal Medical Officers of the Ministries of Health of England and Wales and of Scotland, representatives from all the Universities in Great Britain, delegates, both professional and lay, from practically all the Local Heath Authorities in the United Kingdom, and delegates from other Dominions, from the United States and from many other countries. The future development of public health work, the problems of maternity and child wel¬ fare and of the ageing and aged sections of the population, and many other matteis weie dis¬ cussed at this Conference, and it was very fortunate that so early in my visit I was able to meet many leaders in public health work, including some colleagues of my early days. Later on in London I attended, as delegate of the Victorian Baby Health Centres Asso¬ ciation an International Congress on MaternH and Infant Welfare which was held under the auspices of the Ministry of Health, and also the International Conference of Physicians, held under the auspices of the Royal College of Physicians, at which I took part m the very infor¬ mative and interesting meetings of the section of Social Medicine, under the presidency of S» William Jameson, Principal Medical Officer of the Ministry of Health, on whose invitation I a tended the Conference. I was able to see a good deal of the housing work and current public health activities in the Citv of Birmingham, where I received my first appointment in the field of Public Health 6/ years ago, and saw something of public health activities m Glasgow, Aberdeen and London- T WHS much impressed with the friendliness, good manners and patient fortitude of the people in face of the very restricted food supply and other post-war difficulties, and with the ex¬ minrip nvailahlp to exnectant and nursing mothers, and to children, and had maintained the health ^that all importantPsecHon “ the community at a high level, higher perhaps than it has ever ten beforeIt1notable! also, that the bread supply though perhaps not so attract, ve aesthetically as it had been in former times, was both ample and of a higher nutritive qua , than had been available for generations. n„„ wfl, impressed also by the magnitude of the housing problem, which, m spite of the ex?enSir woTundertaken' between the iwo wars, still presents very great diffleume^both on account of the destruction due to bombing, and of the number o ^rge towns whose working-class areas were built mainly in thejrst ^ be rebuilt The problems of Melbourne and Sydney are minor by companso • , . . te attractions and interest of that wonderful °retrospe(> and tradition, of culture and dvihsation, are so er^a and wjth many attractive engage- menfs -y of Health Committee and of Conner. for their consideration in making the visit possible. , , .^h officers^ - owino- to dollar difficulties, this was unfortunately not possible.
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