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163
BOROUGH OF SOUTHWARK.
southwark tuberculosis dispensary,
82-84, Newington Causeway. S.E.
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors of the
Borough of Southwark.
Sir and Gentlemen,
Daring the year 1921 there have been considerable changes in the
administration of Tuberculosis owing to the Insurance Committee having
transferred Sanatorium Benefit as carried out under the Insurance Act
to the London County Council, so that the duty of providing treatment
in Institutions and the supervision of domiciliary cases is now invested
in that body. This change has not altered the management and constitution
of the dispensary, nor has it lessened the work, though some of it
has diverted into other channels, the clerical work having increased and
a good deal more outdoor work being entailed in the following up of old
cases and the supervision of the homes. In order to cope with this it
became necessary either to appoint an additional Medical Officer or an
extra nurse to do more home visiting. The latter course was adopted
as being a more economical and satisfactory arrangement, and an extra
nurse was duly appointed, with very satisfactory results. The home
conditions show considerable improvement, though considerable overcrowding
is still unavoidable. By the use of the beds lent by the Council
we are able to lessen this to some extent where the overcrowding leads
to direct infection, and the shelters lent to the patients also tend in this
direction, while at the same time enabling patients to live under open-airconditions
if their health will permit and their arrangements allow of it.
The Staff now consists of the Medical Officer of Health, as Administrative
Officer, the Tuberculosis Medical Officer, a Secretary Dispenser, three
Nurses and the Caretakers. In connection with the Staff I regret to
have to report the illness of Nurse O. M. Wallis, who has in consequence
been obliged to give up her post after five years thorough and painstaking
work.
In accordance with instructions from the Ministry of Health, more
work which can appropriately be done by them is being allocated to the
panel practitioners, but all cases are kept under the dispensary for
periodical supervision. The result is that the number of individual