[Report 1957] / Medical Officer of Health, Canterbury Borough / City & County.

  • Canterbury (England). City & County Council.
Date:
1957
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1957] / Medical Officer of Health, Canterbury Borough / City & County. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    14 Dane John, Canterbury. 1958. To the Right Worshipful the Mayor, the Aldermen and the Councillors of the City of Canterbury. I have the honour to present my Annual Report covering the year 1957. It includes the report of Mr. T. D. Martin, Chief Public Health Insi)ector, and my report as Principal School Medical Officer, the latter containing the report on the work of the Child Guidance Clinic. The year ended in a pressure of activity not experienced since the war years, and this has continued throughout the first half of 1958, with little prospect of abating. The drive to protect the child population against poliomyelitis was willingly supported, and received a heartening response from the population. The acceptance of British Tested Salk vaccine and eventually during 1958 of approved vaccine tested elsewhere showed a public con- fidence in our activit}^ which helped us to press onwards. It has proved possible to inoculate all registered who accepted approved vaccine before the onset of the poliomyelitis season. There remains only the trickle of late registrations, and those insisting on British Vaccine, not yet supplied. The application of this policj'^ of protection against poliomyelitis recalls the diphtheria immunisation drive of the 1940’s and it is to be hoped that the same ejiidemiological decline will occur with poliomyelitis a.s occurred with diphtheria and that the protection will be joined with the routine procedures of childhood for all subsequent generations of children. If as is anticipated the protection against poliomyelitis is now to be offered to age groups of adults, the pressure of work will not be relaxed. Health Education is a day-to-day activity of all members of the staff but in particular of the Health Visitor, School Nur.se and Medical Officer. But two subjects have been highlighted during the year. One was home accidents and the other the dangers of smoking. The problem of home accidents is esi>ecially concerned with the toddler and the enfeeblement of the elderly and is always to the fore with health visitors in their advice wlien visiting. Help can l)e given by a public camiiaign to turn the minds of all to a particular asi)ect of home accidents. Tliere is tlie i)ros])ect of such a nation-wide cami)aign in the Autumn of 1958 to open our eyes to burning accidents in the home and to jioint to preven- tive measures. The task of ])romoting a modification in tlie .social behaviour of the public, and this is how the need to tell the public of the