[Report 1952] / Medical Officer of Health, Glasgow.

  • Glasgow (Scotland)
Date:
1952
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1952] / Medical Officer of Health, Glasgow. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    17/338 (page 15)
    Health and prevent Disease.” Every encouragement is given to the senior members of the staff to carry out investigations. Only in this way can new knowledge be gained and advances made. No less than twenty investigations were being carried out during 1952. These included medical investigations into such subjects as Weil’s disease, oil dermatitis, influenza, diphtheria, gastro-enteritis, and the health of sewermen, as well as studies of social problems connected with model lodging-houses, infant mortality and breast feeding. Much of this work is done in the investigators’ own time. Duties of Local Health Authorities under Lunacy and Mental Deficiency Acts (Section 51). This section places a duty on the Local Health Authority to provide or secure the provision of suitable training and occupation for certain groups of mental defectives. Prior to 1948 mentally defective persons who required to be admitted to institutions were accommodated in either Lennox Castle or Larbert Institution. These institutions, however, now serve the whole Western Region and in consequence Glasgow as the largest supplier has experienced difficulties of admission far greater than those which existed prior to 1948 when the Local Authority was in control of institutions and hospitals. At present there is a lengthy waiting list which is still growing, in part due to the fact that no Glasgow case has been admitted to Larbert since 1948. Many urgent cases have perforce to remain at home, often in very poor conditions both as regards guardianship and material surroundings. The medical staffs of the institutions and hospitals co-operate to the best of their ability, but additional beds are an urgent necessity and responsibility for their provision rests with the Regional Hospital Board. Mental Patients.—During 1952, 650 cases were examined by the medical officers of the Mental Health Section to ascertain whether they required full certification for mental hospital. It was found that 66 per cent, required admission to a mental hospital. Accommo- dation for patients under 65 years was readily obtainable, but above this age the greatest difficulties were encountered. While the majority were admitted during the fourteen days in which the certificate was valid, there were several occasions when certificates lapsed through non-admission, thus necessitating revisitation and recertification. This situation did not arise when the Local Authority controlled the mental hospitals and obviously entails a great waste of medical time apart from any legal difficulties which may arise. Another feature to which reference has been made in previous Annual Reports is that