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
Holborn 1923
Annual report of the Medical Officer of Health, for the year 1923
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The following summary gives the position at the end of 1923, of the 85 new cases respecting which information was received during the year: —
| Dead | 24 |
| Cases removed to Hospital and still in-patients at the end of year | 8 |
| Out-patients at Hospitals | 3 |
| In-patients in Sanatoria at end of year | 8 |
| In-patients in Infirmary | 12 |
| Not traced—Incorrect addresses | 4 |
| Removed from Borough | 8 |
| Dispensary Treatment | 3 |
| Home Treatment | 8 |
| Away with relatives in country | 3 |
| Improved—(No medical attendance now) | 2 |
| Waiting admission to Sanatorium | 1 |
| Under observation | 1 |
| 85 |
23 of the 85 notified cases attended the Holborn Tuberculosis Dispensary.
The following indicates the reasons for non-attendance in the remaining cases:—
| Removed to Hospitals, etc. for treatment without prior attendance at Dispensary | 38 |
| Out-patients at other Hospitals or Dispensaries | 6 |
| Dead before notification | |
| Treatment at home by private doctor | 7 |
| Not traced | 4 |
| Removed from Borough | 2 |
| 62 |
Delayed Notification.
The Public Health (Tuberculosis) Regulations, 1912, require notification within
48 hours of the medical practitioner first becoming aware that the person is
suffering from tuberculosis. It is still found that medical practitioners do not
notify cases of this disease until tubercle bacilli have been found in the sputum
and in a number of cases notifications are not received until the death of the
patient or shortly before death takes place. In the past year six cases were
notified only at death, eight within one month of death, seven within three months
and three within six months of death.
It is unfortunate that by a proviso in the Regulations of 1912, a medical
practitioner is not required to notify a case of tuberculosis if he has reasonable
grounds for believing that the case has already been notified. It would seem that
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