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IMMEDIATELY MEASLES OCCURS IN YOUR FAMILY YOU SHOULD
INFORM THE HEAD TEACHER OF THE SCHOOL ATTENDED BY YOUR
CHILDREN, OR THE HEALTH VISITOR AT THE INFANT WELFARE
CENTRE, OR SEND WORD TO THE MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH AT
THE PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT.
A child showing signs of sickening or suffering from measles must not attend
Sunday School, Public Baths, Cinemas, or any place of entertainment, nor mix with
other children.
ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE REMOVAL OF A MEASLES PATIENT TO
HOSPITAL OR FOR NURSING ASSISTANCE IN THE HOME MAY BE MADE
IN SPECIAL CASES WHEN THE NEED FOR THIS IS KNOWN TO THE
MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH.
The sooner you send word of the existence of measles in the home the sooner
will the Medical Officer of Health know and the sooner will help be forthcoming.
Do not wait until bronchitis or pneumonia develop—it may then be too late.
(Signed) H. W. BARNES, Medical Officer of Health.
Propaganda of this description is, in my opinion, essential to
educate parents in the belief that measles in children may be
extremely dangerous, and the younger the child the more dangerous
the attack.
The Metropolitan Asylums Board, at their meeting on October
16th, 1926, adopted a report of their Infectious Hospitals Committee,
which referred to the necessity for alterations in the
arrangements for the admission to the Board's Infectious
Hospitals of cases of scarlet fever and measles in view of the
much higher fatality of the latter disease. As a result of the
adoption of the report referred to, the practice of always
admitting scarlet fever in preference to measles has been
abandoned and a definite allocation of beds for the two
diseases substituted, such allocation to be subject to revision
periodically in relation to the requirements of the moment. In
times of measles prevalence it has been decided that the larger
proportion of accommodation will be reserved for this disease.
When, however, the number of beds available becomes short and
75 per cent, of the accommodation set apart for the two diseases
is exhausted, the Medical Officer of Health will be requested to
select those cases of either scarlet fever or measles which in his
opinion should be received into hospital having regard to all the
circumstances. The effect of the revised arrangements is that
normally medical practitioners will be able to secure the removal
to hospital of patients suffering from measles, with the same
facility as in the case of scarlet fever, and in October, 1927, the
attention of medical practitioners practising in the Borough was
drawn by letter to the altered arrangements. The number of
cases admitted to hospital during the year was 117.
Influenza.
This disease occurred in the early part of the year, but fortunately
did not assume epidemic proportions.