View report page

72
be strictly prohibited from engaging in any industry connected
with the sale or manufacture of human food.
Another difficulty presents itself having regard to the long
duration of the disease, as a rule measured by years, the patient
possibly changing his abode on many occasions. The question
then arises as to limiting the number of times a case shall be
notified, particularly as the cases would in many instances be
transferred to other districts; moreover the patient may be
frequently changing his medical adviser. The notification of
each change of address would, however, be necessary in order
that the vacated premises might be disinfected. A still further
difficulty is in deciding at what stage a case shall become notifiable.
The absence of means of hospital treatment is also a matter
which cannot be entirely disregarded.
System of
Not fication
adopted at
New York
With a view of benefitting by the experience of other
local authorities who have taken action in this matter,
I have ascertained that in the City of New York,
compulsory notification has been made law on condition that an
inspector does not visit the house where the case is reported by a
private medical practitioner, unless requested to do so by the
practitioner. This system would appear to be of value only for
statistical purposes but is probably necessitated by the magnitude
of the work.
The following figures will be of value as shewing the number
of cases notified at New York under the voluntary system.
Estimated Number of cases of
population. tuberculosis notified
1894 1,809,353 ... 4,166
1895 1,879,195 ... 5,824
1896 ... 1,934,077 ... 8,334
In 1897, the compulsory system was adopted so far as
regards Pulmonary Tuberculosis. In the Sanitary Code the