[Report 1941] / Medical Officer of Health, Farnworth Borough.

  • Farnworth (Lancashire, England). Borough Council.
Date:
1941
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1941] / Medical Officer of Health, Farnworth Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    3/16 (page 3)
    To the Chairman and Members of the Health Committee. Gentlemen, Like the two previous reports, the present one is, on the in- struction of the Ministry of Health, abbreviated, and gives a mere out- line of the work done during the year. In spite of war conditions all the medical services of the town were maintained on a peace-time level. The vital statistics for 1941 contain two outstanding features — the one pleasing, and the other rather disquieting. The Infant Mortality Rate of 43.6 is not only the lowest on record for Farnworth, but, for the first time in the history of the town, is lower than the general rate for England and Wales, which is 59. On the other hand, the fact that 33 babies were born dead, against an average of 17 for the previous 5 years, would seem to indicate that the present time of stress and strain is adversely affecting the health of expectant mothers. I do not know at the moment whether other districts have a similar story to tell. If the still birth rate has shown a general rise, there would appear to be an urgent need for investigation. I am, Your obedient servant, A. G. GLASS.