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Public Health (Prevention of Tuberculosis) Regulations, 1925.--Cases have from
time to time been brought to notice in which a tuberculous person has been engaged in an occupation
involving the handling of milk under such conditions as to create a danger of infection of the
milk, and as a result of the provisions of Articles 11 and 16 of the Tuberculosis Regulations of 1912,
which refer to the confidential nature of notification of tuberculosis, local authorities and their
officers have been unable, if persuasion fails, to take any effective action to remove the danger of
infection.
Occupations involving the handling of milk stand, from the point of view of prevention of
tuberculosis, in a somewhat special position and, therefore, the Minister of Health has introduced
the Public Health (Prevention of Tuberculosis) Regulations, 1925, which came into operation on the
31st July last, with a view to :—
(1) preventing persons suffering from respiratory tuberculosis entering upon an occupation
of this kind, and
(2) enabling local authorities, in proper cases and with suitable safeguards, to require persons
engaged in such occupations to discontinue their work when found to be suffering from the disease
in an infective stage.
There was one case during the year in which a milk vendor, known to be suffering from tuberculosis
in an infective form, was served with a notice under Article 3(b) of these Regulations to
discontinue the handling of milk. A claim for compensation was submitted by the vendor but on
investigation being made it transpired that this man had actually sold his business several weeks
before he received the Council's notice, and the claim was not pursued.
THE COUNCIL'S SCHEME FOR THE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT
OF TUBERCULOSIS.
In Circular No. 648, to which reference has already been made, the Minister of Health requires
that this Report shall contain full particulars relating to the administration of the Council's scheme
for tuberculosis and the following is submitted for the purpose of meeting that request.
The Tuberculosis Dispensary.
Very cons derable alterations have taken place during the past five years in regard to the
development of the Tuberculosis Dispensary service.
Up to the end of the year 1921 the Council had no treatment machinery of their own, but
they had an arrangement with the Kensington Voluntary Tuberculosis Dispensary Committee
under which the latter body carried out Dispensary Treatment of tuberculous persons residing in
that portion of the Borough north of Kensington High Street. A similar arrangement with the
Brompton Hospital Authorities provided for the Dispensary Treatment at that Hospital of those
persons suffering from tuberculosis and residing south of Kensington High Street. Grants were
paid to these two bodies in return for the services rendered.
The North Kensington Voluntary Dispensary Committee ceased to operate on December 31st,
1921, owing to the difficulty experienced in obtaining sufficient funds from voluntary sources to
enable them to continue their work, and their duties were taken over by the Borough Council.
The Council acquired the lease of the premises at No. 119, Ladbroke Grove where the voluntary
dispensary had been situated for some years; and they were, therefore, fortunate in being able to
continue the work of dealing with tuberculous patients at the same place, which is a very central one.
South Kensington continued to be served by the Dispensary on the premises of the Brompton
Hospital but it was found difficult to co-ordinate the work of treatment at a large Hospital like
Brompton with the preventive work carried out by the Borough Council, and in this respect the
arrangements in South Kensington were not as satisfactory as those in the northern area. The
Council's experience of the combination of the work of treatment and prevention at the North
Kensington Dispensary led them to decide to concentrate their work at the North Dispensary, and
the agreement with the Brompton Hospital Authorities terminated on 31st March, 1923.