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47
Of some interest and compliment to the efficiency of our treatment is the
following case :—
A mother and her three children, formerly resident on the White City Estate
came from their "new town" home outside London by car for treatment "as
this was the only place the mother knew where nits could be removed".
A total of 137 males were treated for body lice; 27 residents, 66 from a lodging
house and 44 vagrants. The latter section cause considerable disruption at the
Baths. Residents attending for treatment resent being associated with this class
of person and in several cases have not returned for second treatment.
Three baths are available and waiting time does not normally exceed 30 minutes
but let one of these tramps use a bath and it means a full morning or afternoon.
The following is commonplace: having entered the bathroom it is at least half an
hour before their clothing can be collected for sterilisation. Hundreds of cigarette
ends are removed from pockets, the tobacco shredded into a tin with the pieces
of discarded paper scattered like confetti over the floor. Next it is usual for them
to take advantage of the abundant hot water to give their kitchen utensils a good
wash and then they condescend to have their bath and treatment. There are variations of this routine but the combined operations of kit inspection, to washing and
dressing rarely take less than two hours. Once they depart, up to 30 minutes can
be spent in cleansing, deodorising and disinfesting the room.
Before modernisation of the Baths it was possible to segregate these vagrants;
now this is impossible and their proximity is objectionable to any normal user and
very forthright opinions are expressed, particularly by mothers with children.
Whilst appreciating it is to the general good for such persons to be cleansed as and
when facilities are encountered in their wanderings, should the problem continue
to increase it will be advisable to provide a separate bathroom with all facilities
but no "trimmings" to ensure a speedier turn-over and to avoid contact with normal
users.
Steam Sterilisation
This was a very busy year for this section. A total of 310 mattresses from
Olympia was stoved after the Dairy Show in October. Work was undertaken for
Kensington and the L.C.C. during reconstruction of the Kensington section, and
nearly 3,000 articles were dealt with for Barnes Borough Council. This work
received from Barnes included more than 2,000 articles from a laundry, which were
thought to have been infected by clothing of a smallpox case
Disinfestation
Treatments of verminous premises continue to decrease, a total of 297 bug
infestations being dealt with compared with 354 last year. In addition 17 treatments for cockroaches, 29 for fleas, and 36 for various minor infestations were
made.