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not considered that these vaccination clinics will be utilised
to any great extent until the occurrence of smallpox in the
Borough acts as an incentive to the population to avail themselves
of the facilities for protection against the disease.
Food Poisoning.
There were nine notifications of food poisoning received
during the year. Each case was investigated with a view to
ascertaining the source of infection, but as specimens of food,
faeces and vomit were unobtainable, the incriminating organism
could not be ascertained. With the exception of two
notifications received in respect of the consumption of the same
article of food, each of the notifications represented an isolated
case, no other instances of illness being reported in connection
with them.
There is reason to believe that medical practitioners
frequently fail to notify cases, probably because they are
clinically not serious. Notifications, to give the best results,
should not be delayed otherwise investigations cannot satisfactorily
be completed as samples of the suspected food and
vomit may not be available.
In addition to these individual cases, however, there were
five outbreaks of sickness and diarrhoea reported to the Public
Health Department as having occurred among scholars and
staffs of various schools in the Borough after partaking of a
meal prepared by the London County Council School Meals
Service. Particulars of these outbreaks are set out in the
following table : —
Date.
No. of
Notifications.
No. of
Cases
Reported.
No. of
Deaths.
Organisms or Other Agents
Responsible and Foods
Involved.
4/3/48
Nil
22
Nil
Cultures of minced steamed
bacon yielded an organism
giving the reactions of a
bacillus of the "atypical dysentery"
group, also hæmolytic
streptococci and
staphylococcus aureus.
18/3/48
6
Nil
Nil
Specimens of food, vomit and
faeces unobtainable.
14
19/4/48
Samples of dried milk yielded
cultures of a hæmolytic
streptococcus.
Nil
Nil
153
22/4/48
Nil
Do. do.
Nil
22/6/48
Nil
4
Nil
Specimens of food, vomit and
faeces unobtainable.