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The treatment of children suffering with whooping cough in outpatient
departments is viewed by many Medical Officers of Health with
disfavour. Surely some of these children, possibly many of these children,
are still infectious. They travel to the hospitals in public vehicles s
although admitted to canteens now provided by many hospitals, some of
these children are taken into eating-places. There can be no doubt that
the disease is spread in some measure by these practices.
Again when a child contracts whooping cough in hospital or at a
convalescent home surely all such children should be removed in an
ambulance or some other suitable vehicle, not in a public conveyance.
Once a child has been taken into a hospital, convalescent home or any
such place on account of its health, it is a very poor result if the child has
to be sent back home still suffering from disease, even if it is a new one.
The job of improving- the child's health once undertaken ought to be
finished. If the child falls ill with another disease and this new disease
cannot be treated in the first institution, it would seem only fitting that
the child should be transferred to another institution.
Fortunately the London County Council fever hospitals accept patients
with whooping cough. Last year 12 children (30 per cent, of the notified
cases) were admitted from Holborn to hospitals of the L.C.C.
Measles.
The notification of measles was discontinued at the end of 1919 but during
1930 I received information of 392 cases of measles. Of these 102 were notified
by school teachers and 169 by medical practitioners; information of 37 was given
by hospital authorities, 42 by the health visitors, 30 by parents, 4 from death
returns, 2 by sanitary inspectors and 6 from other sources.
Age.
Twenty-two were under 1 year, 205 were between 1 and 5 years, 139 were
between 5 and 16 years, and 26 were over 16.
Deaths.
Fifteen died; 3 were under 1 year, 10 were between 1 and 5 years, and
2 were between 5 and 16 years.
Contacts.