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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Hampstead 1952
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Hampstead Borough]
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11
TUBERCULOSIS.
NEW CASES AND MORTALITY DURING 1952.
During the year 1952, 115 new cases of Tuberculosis were notified,
105 being cases of Pulmonary Tuberculosis and 10 of other forms of
the disease.
The following statistical table gives an analysis of the newly notified cases and deaths during 1952.
| Age Periods. | New Cases. | Deaths. | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Respiratory. | Non-Respiratory. | Respiratory. | NonRespiratory. | |||||
| M. | F. | M. | F. | M. | F. | M. | F. | |
| Under 1 | - | — | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1—4 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 |
| 5—14 | - | 7 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 15—24 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 1 | - | 1 | — | - |
| 25—34 | 19 | 22 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - | — | - |
| 35—44 | 11 | 10 | 1 | - | 2 | 1 | - | - |
| 45—54 | 7 | 3 | - | - | - | - | — | 1 |
| 55—64 | 1 | 2 | - | 1 | 4 | 1 | - | - |
| 65 and upwards | 8 | 2 | — | — | 3 | 1 | — | 1 |
| Totals | 51 | 54 | 6 | 4 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 3 |
PUBLIC HEALTH (TUBERCULOSIS) REGULATIONS.
The Revocation of the Tuberculosis Regulations, 1930, has given us
food of thought. Under these regulations it was the duty of the
borough medical officer of health to keep a register of persons notified as
suffering from tuberculosis, and he and his council were charged with
the duty of investigating the source of infection, preventing the spread
of infection and remedying conditions favourable to infection. In
rescinding these regulations there was issued a circular from the Ministry
of Health. This states that although the borough medical officer is no
longer required to keep a register of notifications he might naturally be
expected to do so. He is in fact urged to do so. Hospitals no longer
have an obligation to inform the medical officer of health of admission
to hospital and sanatorium and discharge therefrom, but nevertheless the
hospital boards and committees are asked to do so. Why then rescind
the regulations?
This keeping of a register of tuberculous persons up-to-date and
correct depends on all authorities co-operating in doing so, and this is
unlikely to be achieved unless there is a statutory obligation enforcing it.
I am sorry that any regulation should have been rescinded that might in
any way have helped in the problem of preventing tuberculosis.
It is obvious that there must be the closest co-operation between the
borough medical officer and the chest physician, and it would be far