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 1922
Annual report of the Medical Officer of Health for the year 1922
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The following summary gives the position at the end of 1922, of the 82 cases notified during the year: —
| Dead | 22 |
| Cases removed to Hospital and still in-patients at the end of year | 11 |
| Out patients at Hospitals | 2 |
| In-patients in Sanatoria at end of year | 13 |
| In-patients in Infirmary | 2 |
| Not traced—Incorrect addresses | 4 |
| Removed from Borough | 15 |
| Dispensary Treatment | 5 |
| Home Treatment | 8 |
| 82 |
Only 27 of the 82 notified eases 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 | 30 |
| Out patients at other Hospitals or Dispensaries | 1 |
| Dead before notification | 8 |
| Private home treatment | 4 |
| Not traced | 4 |
| Removed from Borough | 8 |
| 55 |
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 eight cases were
notified only at death, four within one month of death, four within three months
and four within six months of death.
In this connection I wrote to the London Insurance Panel Medical Committee
and the Local Branch of the British Medical Association, drawing attention to the
desirability of early notification. Communications were also addressed to a
number of medical practitioners, hospitals and other institutions, respecting delay
or non-notification. In some cases where the first information was received after
death it was reported that the true nature of the disease was diagnosed for the
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