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102
It will be remembered that the Education Department,
London County Council, adopted new regulations for the exclusion
of children suffering from measles, or coming from houses
where measles exists.
These regulations are as follows:—
Children suffering from measles must be excluded for at
least one month.
Children coming from houses where measles exists, but
who are not themselves suffering from the disease, should be
dealt with as follows:—
1. A child attending school, other than an infants' school,
who has had measles, must not be excluded from attendance
at school.
2. A child attending other than an infants' school, who has
not had measles, must be excluded from attendance at
school until the Monday following the expiration of 14
days from the occurrence of the first case.
3. A child attending an infants' school, whether or not it
has made measles, must be excluded from attendance
at school until the Monday following the expiration of
14 days from the occurrence of the last case.
The above regulations do not appear to have had any
effect, so far as the Borough of Battersea is concerned, in
checking the spread of the disease, as will be noted when comparing
the mortality statistics for 1906 and 1907 respectively.
Much more effectual, in my opinion, would it be to exclude
from attendance at school children (at least) under five years of
age. When it is remembered that 72 deaths of children from
this disease (which probably understates the mortality from
measles, as there are many deaths registered as being due to
bronchitis and pneumonia which should more properly be
registered as due to measles), and that 69 of these deaths (i.e.,
95 per cent.) were of children under five years of age, the
necessity for this reform will be at once apparent.