London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Ealing 1950
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Ealing]
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tivity needs to be nursed in special hospitals—away from all other
patients. As a rule patients from Ealing are now admitted to
Neasden Isolation Hospital, Brentfield Road, Willesden ; Telephone
Wil 2117/2118/1850.
Exclusion.
School children with infectious disease are usually kept out of school for the following periods:
| Scarlet Fever | Seven days after discharge from hospital or home isolation, unless there is a running nose or ear, sore throat or septic spots, in which case this may need to be extended. |
| Diphtheria | Depends on the clinical condition, but usually negative throat swabs are advisable before return to school. |
| Measles | 14 days from appearance of the rash. |
| German Measles | 7 days from appearance of the rash. |
| Whooping Cough | 28 days from the appearance of the characteristic whoop. |
| Mumps | 14 days from onset or 7 days after disappearance of all swelling. |
| Chickenpox | 14 days after appearance of the rash. |
Home Conditions.
When a case of infectious disease is notified the home is
visited by the health visitor, or by the sanitary inspector in certain
cases, e.g., food poisoning, enteric fever, dysentery, or smallpox.
Advice is given as to isolation, disinfection, and home nursing,
in order to help prevent spread to others in the household. An
attempt is also made to identify the source of infection, that it
may be removed where possible.
Early diagnosis.
Since these diseases are as a rule most infective in the early
stages, it is of prime importance that parents should put children
to bed as soon as they appear " off colour " and call in their own
family practitioner. It is most unwise to take a child with a rash
or spasmodic cough to a health clinic or doctor's surgery, where
there is high risk of infecting others.
The family doctor may in doubtful cases call in a consultant
from the isolation hospital—or send specimens for examination to
the pathological department of the local hospital.