[Report 1949] / Medical Officer of Health and School Medical Officer of Health, East Riding of Yorkshire County Council.

  • East Riding of Yorkshire (England). County Council.
Date:
1949
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1949] / Medical Officer of Health and School Medical Officer of Health, East Riding of Yorkshire County Council. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    o Tile vital statisti(*s foT tlu' yiau' under review are generally satisfaetor^'. T’Ik' luidli rate, as was exjuuded, lias talleu. rt was Id.l ]uu‘ 1,000 of tlie ])o])ulati()ii as eoiupared witli a rat(' of 10.7 in 104(S, and it is noted that the fall has been almost entiiady diu' to a I'edmdion in the nunihei- of bij’ths in the Tidian Distidids of the (hniiity. The eftecd of this dT‘o]) in tlu' numbtu' of births has btnm ])artially offset by a ])leasin”‘ furtluu- fall in tlii' stillbiith I'ate, whiidi has fallen to 'Jl.O ])(M' 1,000 hirlhs as (*oni])ared with a rate of ‘dd.d in 104(S and by a fui'thtn' fall in tlu' infant mortality rate, whiidi has d]'o|)]i(Ml 0) the lowest tiyure so fai* recorded for tilt' (onntv—40 ja'i- 1,000 live bii'ths. The ille^dtimate birth ]“ate has falb'ii to a I'att' (‘omjiai'abh' with that which existed in ]U‘e-war days. Tht' yeiiei'al death I'ate has shown a 7‘ise from 10.7 in 104S lo 14.4 ])('r 1,000 of the ))0]nilatioii for 1040, but tht' ratt' for 104S a])])eaT's fti have been an abnormally low out' and the pi'est'iit tiyure corresjmnds very closely ft) the avt'rayt' ftir tht' last thiidy years. However, as each year yoes by, it is found that an increasino- proportion of the tleaths occur in ])eo])le wht) liave reached old aps-e, anti tlurin^' lOtO. 0S% of the ileatlm occurred in people wlio were Oo vears t)f aue or t)blei‘. 44ie inci'easiny pro^ioiaion ol ttbl pet)]de in the ])0]uilation is ctuistantly ci'eatiny iit'W problems which will not be eiitii'cly stdved by the ])rovision t)l Hostels by the County (V)uncil 07' suitablt* houses by Distidt't ('ount‘i1s. The main p7‘oble7n is that of dt'alino' with I he a^'t'il sick, and a 7‘eference to the st'ctitm of this 7'e])ort dt'alino' with the l)o7uestic Hel]) Se7‘vice will show h.ow la7'0‘(' a prt)po7‘tion of the time of the available Hel])s is alhx-atetl ft) rhis o']‘077]7 ttf ]mtients. Tlie fdostels, whethf'7’ t'xistiny t)7‘ ])7’t)]7t)st'tl, will not ]7rovide facilities fo7' those 7it't*tliny constant medical atid 77ursino- care. Thest' ctuiie into the catt'y‘t)7'y of the ('h7‘07nc sick, for who77i the7‘e is a o'ene7’al sho74ayt' of hospital l)ed acco7n7noda- ti(77i, a7id thus only the nio7'e s('7'iotisly ill cases te7id to find beds 7i77der tlie aeo'is of the lie^'io7ial Hos]iital Ifinnal. Many aged sick thus fall betwee7i two stools they are, by I'eason of 7ieedi7ig' co7ista7it medical or nu7'si7ig attention, unsuitable for ad7uissio7i to ()ld Peo]7le's Hostels, and at the same time can 07ily with difficulty find accommodation in hospitals. The old Public Assistance tnstituTio7is, for all their actual and imagined faults, did provide a service wdiich