[Report 1910] / Medical Officer of Health, Glasgow.

  • Glasgow (Scotland)
Date:
1910
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1910] / Medical Officer of Health, Glasgow. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    25/192 (page 17)
    NATURE OF ATTENDANCE AT BIRTH. Appendix Table XIX. shows that, of the 22,845 live and still births notified, 10,399, or 45'5 per cent., were attended medically, either at home or in institutions, while 12,446, or 54'5 per cent, had no medical attention. These ratios are approximately the same as in the two previous years. The number of births attended medically varies greatly in the several Wards, the maximum of 93'6 per cent, being reached in Langside, and the minimum of 20‘3 per cent, in Broomielaw. In fifteen out of the twenty-six Wards the proportion of births not medically attended exceeded the mean of 54'5 for the City, two Wards having rates under 60 per cent., nine between 60 and 70 per cent., while in Blackfriars, Calton, Cowcaddens, and Broomielaw the rates exceeded 70 per cent, in the order named. Until the advantages of a Midwives Act have been extended to Scotland, and an official register of midwives prepared, it will not be possible to dis- tinguish accurately between the births attended by certified and uncertified women. Excluding midwives belonging to the Maternity Institutions and Associations in the City, however, a list of 240 names has been prepared, mostly from information contained in the notification cards, which shows that 108 certified, and 132 uncertified, are in more or less regular practice. STILL-BIRTHS. As already stated, the number of still births recorded during the year was 878, which is equal to 4 per cent, of the iive births notified, as compared with 3'9 per cent, and 2'9 per cent, in the two preceding years. Excluding the still-births in institutions, and comparing only those occurring at home, the percentage to births medically attended is equal to 3'6, and in births non-medicallv attended to 3‘4. In the preceding year the pro- portions were 3'5 and 31 per cent, respectively. While there is every reason to believe that medical men are notifying the still-births occurring under their care, many midwives are still in ignorance of the fact that such births should be notified, and until some system of registration of still-births is instituted, we shall probably always lose a proportion of the numbers actually occurring. The Ward details are shown in Appendix Table XX. INFANT VISITATION. Under the scheme of infant visitation, a female inspector visits every house in which a birth has occurred, provided we have not been informed that a medical practitioner is in attendance. 13,293 enquiry cards were accordingly issued to the female inspectors during the year. Of these, 20 proved to be duplicate notifications, while 853 were not visited for various reasons—princi- pally because, although the notification did not bear that a medical practitioner was in attendance, the district was not of a character which suggested that visitation was necessary. 85 had removed from the address given before the inspector called, while in 160 others doctors were found to be in attendance. There thus remained 12,175 children not medically attended at birth who received at least one official visit after notification. Certain information in regard to these latter children is shown in the following summary: — Number. Per Cent. Males, ... 6,175 50-7 Females, 6,000 49-3 12,175 Legitimate, 11,536 94-7 Illegitimate, 639 5-3 12,175 Born at Full Term, 11,595 95-2 Premature births, 580 4-8 12,175