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14 Parish of St. George the Martyr, Southivark.
In a report signed by your late Chairman of the-Public Health Committee and
presented to your Vestry, recommendation III. is as follows:—
"As regards hospital accommodation the house in Market-street, in addition to
its ordinary use, might, having 20 rooms, be utilized in case of emergency as a
hospital, and, without overcrowding, about 30 patients could be accommodated."
Diphtheria.—Diphtheria, shows the largest number of cases and deaths ever
recorded, both in St. George's and throughout London. Considering the advances
made in general sanitation of late years some more direct cause than mere filth must
be looked for to explain the increased mortality from diphtheria.
Amongst the chief exciting causes are:—(a) Density of population; (b) close
aggregation in schools with insufficient ventilation and floor space; (c) aggregation
in block buildings and on their staircases and court yards ; (d) dampness and cold.
2,848 cases of diptheria were admitted to the Board's hospitals from all London in
1893, out of which number 865 died
There were 186 cases notified in St. George's, from which number 41 died—33
under and eight over five years of age. Diphtheria, like scarlet fever, is always most
fatal in infants. The maximum mortality occurs in the first year of life, when it
reaches the high percentage of 69 9, subsequently falling with every additional year
of life to the minimum of 3-6 per cent, amongst persons between 30 and 35 years of
age.
Amongst adults those who are in attendance upon the sick are most liable to
suffer, particularly mothers, nurses, and medical men.
" Sore throats " in young children should always be regarded with suspicion, and
the fact remembered that diphtheritic infection may be conveyed from the mouth
of a patient as long as one month after convalescence.
Reference to the Chart will show the seasonal prevalence of the complaint.
Measles.—Twenty-two deaths, all under five years of age, took place in St. George's
in 1893, as against 66 in 1892. The aggregate number of deaths during the two years
is exceeded among the zymotic class of diseases by diarrhoea only.
Measles caused 1,661 deaths in London in 1893, which was less than one-half the
number registered in 1892.
There is no compulsory notification of measles in London, and the disease is
generally looked upon by parents and guardians as a necessary and trifling event to
which all must submit. In many cases it is not until serious complications, in the
shape of lung mischief, have set in that it occurs to the parent to seek medical aid.
In healthy houses, well nourished and well-cared-for children almost invariably
make a good recovery. Amongst the poor and badly nurtured children of Southwark,
brought up in cold, damp and overcrowded tenements', the proportion of deaths to
attacks is as much as 20 or 30 per cent.
Measles is most prevalent and most fatal in the winter months of November,
December and January, and less so in the late spring months of May and June.
Enteric or Typhoid Fever.—41 cases of this filth disease were notified as against
28 in 1892. Of this nnmber seven died in 1893 and seven in 1892.
The Chart shows the usual increased prevalence of typhoid fever in the late
autumn. Like diarrhoea, typhoid is most virulent when developed by a hot and
dry summer, such as was the case in 1893.
This fever is transmitted from the infected to the healthy, chiefly by means of
water and air polluted by specific bowel discharges.