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The Council's Maternity and Child Welfare Scheme offers
consultative specialist assistance for the diagnosis and treatment
of these patients and during the year four requests were made by
private medical practitioners for the services of the Council's consulting
gynæcologist.
Measles.
Measles was made compulsorily notifiable in Camberwell and
the rest of London as from October Ist, 1938. Secondary cases
occurring in the same household within two months are not
however required to be notified. Formal notifications numbered
12. of which three cases were removed to hospital. In addition
to the compulsorily notifiable cases there were 2,793 cases, including
suspected cases of measles reported from schools and other sources
of which 373 were removed to hospital. The number of deaths
from measles in Camberwell during the year under review was 11.
The biennial measles epidemic of 1937/8 terminated about the
middle of the year.
No information is available as to the use by general medical
practitioners of measles serum for prophylaxis or attenuation
purposes.
Whooping Cough.
Whooping cough also was made compulsorily notifiable in the
same way as measles. The formal notifications numbered 38, and
16 of these cas es were removed to hospital. There were 317 cases
reported from schools and other sources, of which 71 were removed
to hospital. There were six deaths.
All cases of measles and whooping cough coming to the knowledge
of the Public Health Department were visited, and where
the patients were not receiving medical attention this course was
suggested. Arrangements for the removal of patients or the provision
of home nursing assistance were made in certain cases.
Food Poisoning.
During the year nine notifications of cases of suspected food
poisoning were received. Investigations were carried out in every
instance with a view to ascertaining the source of infection, but in
no case was it found that the alleged incriminating article of food
was the specific cause of the illness of the patient.