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28
DEATHS FROM INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
During the year 1914 no additional disease was
included in the list of those already notifiable under
Sec. 55 of the Public Health (London) Act, 1891. The
following table indicates the locality (hospital or home)
of the deaths from this class of disease; in addition,
it includes measles and whooping-cough, cases of which
are now admitted to the hospitals of the Metropolitan
Asylums Board from Poor Law Infirmaries, etc. The
admission of cases from private residences, however,
has been temporarily suspended owing to the pressure
upon the hospital accommodation during last Autumn
caused by the large number of Scarlet Fever and
Diphtheria cases requiring removal. At present Measles
and Whooping-cough are not notifiable, but a circular
was recently issued by the Local Government Board
offering to sanction medical notification of these diseases
to the extent of the first case in each family. In the
event of this being accepted and put in operation, it is
the view of the Local Government Board that subsequent
cases could not fail to be discovered by the staff
of the Health Department without formal notification.
I should prefer full notification, such as obtains with
Scarlet Fever, etc., but as there is no probability of
this being granted, I am of opinion that the offer of
the Local Government Board should be accepted. At
present we receive reports from the School Authorities
only, and though we are informed of most of the cases
of Measles, the information comes too late to be of much
use.