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49
Tuberculosis.
Compulsory Notification of Poor Law Cases.—Poor Law District
Medical Officers and Medical Officers of Poor Law Institutions are
lequired, under an Order which came into force on the 1st January,
1909, to send a notification to the Medical Officer of Health of the
district in which a consumptive patient is (or was before admission
to an institution) resident, within 48 hours after recognition of the
symptoms. The Superintending Officer of an institution is required to
send a notification of the actual or intended place of destination and
address at that place of any consumptive person leaving such institution,
and Eelieving Officers are required to notify changes of address of
patients other than to an institution.
Voluntary Notification.—In addition to the above requirement the
Council has had in force since the beginning of 1903 a system of voluntary
notification.
In 1908, 148 persons were notified, 69 of these being inmates of
Poor Law infirmaries.
In 1909, 438 persons were notified under the combined systems, 30
having been previously known; of these, 159 persons were voluntarily
notified, and 281 under the Order (two of the latter having been notified
voluntarily in the first instance). Of the compulsory group, 136 were
persons from common lodging-houses, casual wards, &c., so that
302 was the net number of consumptive persons notified as having
regular residence in the City.
In 1910, 275 persons not previously notified were certified to be
suffering from pulmonary tuberculosis, of these 135 were voluntarily
notified and 140 under the Order. Of the latter 90 were persons from
common lodging-houses, casual wards, &c.
186 deaths from consumption were registered of persons who had
resided in Westminster, inclusive of casuals, &c.; 71 of these had been
notified during life; 45 more should have been notified under the
Order, as the deaths occurred in Poor Law institutions, but the majority
of these had no definite address other than the casual ward ; these are
to be notified in future. There remain therefore 70 deaths of residents
who had not been known to the Public Health Department during their
illness. Details are shown on the next page. Visits to the families
subsequently have led to the discovery of other persons suffering.