The Health Congress at blackpool

PUBLIC

HEALTH

SOCIETY OF MEDICAL OFFICERS OF HEALTH No. 10 Vol. LIX

JULY CONTENTS PAGE

EDITORIAL T h e H e a l t h Congress a t Blackpool . . . D i p h t h e r i a T r e n d s in t h e U n i t e d States T h e C h i l d H e a l t h Services . . . . . . Food Poisoning of C h e m i c a l O r i g i n . . . Positive H e a l t h for the N a t i o n . . . . . .

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E. H . Willdns, M.B. (DUBL.), D.P.H N o r a h M a r c h , B.sc., F.R.SAN.X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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CORRE'SPONDENCE D e n t a l Officers and the

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THE SOCIETY OF MEDICAL OFFICERS OF HEALTH

SPECIAL ARTICLES T h e O r g a n i s a t i o n of M e d i c a l W o r k . By J. J. B u c h a n , M.D., D.P.H., Barr.-at-Law ......... From " D r a i n p i p e Concept % to "Biological Bacl~ground. By J. Greenwood Wilson, M.D., F.R.C.P., D.P.H . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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NEWS AND SUMMARY T h e N a t i o n a l H e a l t h Service B i l l i n C o m m i t t e e

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OBITUARY

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EDITORIAL The H e a l t h Congress a t B l a e k p o o l T h e Royal Sanitary Institute had arranged an excellent programme for the first post-war Health Congress, held at Blackpool from June 3rd to 7th. T h e prospect of discussing topical problems and of meeting old friends after six years of war drew an attendance which beat all records--l,600 delegates compared with the previous best of about 1,100 in 1939--and some of the sections and conferences were almost mass meetings. None the less the papers and discussions were of a high standard and were much appreciated b y all who attended. L o r d Woolton gave the Congress a good start on Monday afternoon with as lively a presidential address as one can r e m e m b e r ; his themes were the dangers of ' " remote c o n t r o l " by administrators and the importance of educating the public to realise the wisdom of positive action for raising the health of the community. As examples, he mentioned the need for guidance in selection of foods and the advantages of such measures as diphtheria immunisation. In the Preventive Medicine Section on Tuesday, June 4th, Sir Wilson Jameson took for the subject of his presidential address the advances in preventive medicine made during the war, for instance, the new insecticides and chemical d r u g s ; he thought, too, that the beginning of a system of ascertainment of morbidity through the E.M.S. hospitals and the wartime Social Survey gave great promise for the future. Prof. J. A. Ryle then gave a paper on the social pathology of rheumatic fever that provoked a most interesting discussion on the possibilities of the new fields of social medicine and the place of non-medical statisticians in health departments. T h e r e followed a paper by Prof. J. M. Mackintosh on the future of the special hospital which he saw as part of the general hospital, to the mutual benefit of both. On Wednesday, June 5th, the Marchioness of Reading presided, in the section of maternal and child health, over a discussion on the care of children away from their parents, on which she herself gave a knowledgeable lead in favour of day nurseries, nursery schools and residential nurseries. Prof. J. C. Spence, of Newcastle, provided a useful opposition in this discussion, on the grounds that nurseries facilitate the transmission of infections at a susceptible age and weaken the influence of family life and of mothers ; he regretted the passing of the old-fashioned " nannie " and suggested that foster-mothers would be the best substitute for hard-worked mothers who needed aid in care of their children. However, the general feeling of the meeting was that nurseries, so widely established owing to war-time needs, had come to stay. Dr. S. W. Savage tackled the difficult problem of rehabilitation of problem families in a paper read to the second session of this section. Meanwhile on Tuesday the Engineers and Architects had discussed domestic heating and prefabricating of houses, a r ~ on Wednesday the T o w n Planning section dealt with light and sound in relation to layout and design of b u i l ~

Annual Luncheon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Roll of M e m b e r s , 1 9 4 6 - 4 7 " " •. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Council M e e t i n g . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ordinary Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . North Western Branch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Yorkshire Branch . . . . . . . . . . . . . M a t e r n i t y and C h i l d W e l f a r e G r o u p . . . . . . . . . . . . School M e d i c a l Service G r o u p . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dental Officers' G r o u p ........................

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and the use of landscape architecture to give form and colour to urban surroundings. All these subjects were introduced by experts w h o were heard with interest by m a n y medical officers of health. T h e Conference of Medical Officers of Health on Thursday, June 6th, heard a stimulating address from our President, Prof. J. Johnstone Jervis. H e recounted the public health achievements of local authorities in the past and held that, even after the diminution of their functions under the National Health Service, there would be plenty left, and possibly n e w servmes added, to retain the interest of health committees of the major health authorities. A symposium on the future o f paediatrics by Prof. Capon, of Liverpool, Dr. Jean Mackintosh, of Birmingham, and Dr. Frank Gray, of London, brought out very well the contrasting points of view of the professor of child health, the M. & C.W. officer and the general prac. titioner respectively. T h e r e was no pulling of punches in this enjoyable debate. Dr. E. D. Irvine, M.O.H. of Shipley, followed with a wellthought-out paper on the topical problem of the care of the aged; he said that there was general expectation of a more enlightened provision amongst old people who were conscious of political trends and who loathed the Public Assistance attitude. H e was listened to with attention when he urged that the principle for local authorities in this matter should always be " a home of their own," and that hospitalisation should have the aim of getting even the old better and back " home " again. Estimates of hospital accommodation required for the old ranged from one to two beds p e r thousand population, and Dr. Irvine urged that the latter figure should be the minimum for the aged chronic sick. T h e development of geriatrics as a speciality deserved consideration. T h e conference of Sanitary Inspectors heard a presidential address from Mr. A. Tyler, chairman of their association, in which he urged the establishment of a Sanitary Services Division, staffed by sanitary inspectors, at the Ministry of Health, as a stimulus to the personnel throughout the country. T h e conference went on to discuss housing and slum clearance, and hygiene of food premises, the latter bringing out the backwardness of practice in this country compared with the United States. T h e Health Visitors' conference heard an inspiring presidential address from Dr. Jean Mackintosh and a discussion on the allocation of duties in the public health nursing service offered by Miss Calder of the L.C.C. and Miss Penny of Surrey C.C. Dr. Robert Sutherland spoke on the important role of the health visitor in health education. Enough h a s been said in this brief account to indicate the wide range of the Congress and the interest and enjoyment which it afforded to all present. T h e social functions, including the Congress Dinner, attended by about 400 members and ~ o s, were much enjoyed, and Blackpool itself provided d and accommodation and some bracing, if blowy,