View report page

49
Annual Report of the Medical Officer of Health.—1896.
Notice of disinfections for Head Teachers, taken from a book with counterfoils, are
granted as regards (a) school children who have been actually sick, and (b) children
who have been living in infected houses, and have been therefore kept from school.
This notice is usually sent by post, but now and then by a Disinfector.
(3) Keeping of Books.—In my opinion sufficient books are kept, but the system
might perhaps be made more perfect. It may be noted, however, that multiplication of
books does not always mean increased efficiency. With regard to the " book or books"
which the recent Report of the Health Sub-Committee complains are not kept by the
Medical Officer, I beg to state that: first, no definition of such " book or books " is contained
in the order of the Local Government Board of 8th December, 1891, framed
under the Public Health (Lond.) Act, 1891, and, moreover, cannot be procured from the
Local Government Board. Secondly, that from my reading of the phrase " baok or
books " meant by the order, do, as a matter of fact, already exist in the records of
notices, in the registers and in the other books (of which a full list has been given in
my Report of 15th December, 1896). All of the foregoing records, together with my
book containing reports to the Vestry, are kept in my office.
(4) Enforcement of Public Health Act.—It is hardly necessary to enter at length
into this point. Careful records are kept by the Inspector of every detail with regard
to legal proceedings, in special registers kept in the office.
%
(b) Household.—Under this heading, which deals with the administration of disinfection
as it affects the household, we may consider the following points:—
(1) Methods employed in Infected Booms.—In my opinion nothing has yet been
introduced that answers better for practical work than sulphur fumigation. At the
same time the "spray" (corrosive sublimate), or other systems, may or may not be more
efficient, but their use would be attended with possible drawbacks that call for careful
consideration before abondoning the use of sulphur. As to the way in which sulphur
should be applied, the directions are simple enough. I have drawn lip a code of such
rules for the guidance of the Disinfectors, which will be found in the Appendix. It
may be added that, so far as can be learnt, written instructions have been given to
Disinfectors by only two of the Metropolitan Medical Officers of Health. It may be
as well to urge here, as I have often done before, that sulphur fumigation must be
regarded as a part only of room disinfection; free exposure to air and cleansing are
furthur essentials to the complete process. The question of cleansing I shall refer to
later when discussing the "enforcement of Section 60 of the Public Health Act. " In
nearly all cases disinfectants are distributed gratis by the Disinfectors for the use of
infected households. This is done shortly after the arrival of the notification at the
office.
(2) Carriage of goods to disinfecting apparatus is effected by the Chief Disinfector
and by his assistant, or, in the absence of the latter, by the Chief Disinfector and one
of the roadmen. The carriage used weighs upwards of a quarter of a ton, and is, in
my opinion, far too heavy for the purpose, unless a pony be provided. The wheeling
of this heavy cart, which must altogether weigh some half a ton or more when full,
to and fro between the infected houses to the disinfecting station is a great tax on the
strength of the disinfectors, particularly in windy weather. When the journey has
to be repeated from four to eight times in a day the men engaged will have little
energy to bestow on other parts of their work. As to the goods to be removed, I
would certainly advice that all portable articles, such as beds, bedding, carpets, curtains,
and the like, be taken away in the canvas bags supplied for the purpose, after a list has
been made of such articles.
(3) Disinfecting Apparatus.—Nothing need be said as to this beyond the fact that
the Vestry has possessed for the last three years a Washington Lyon's apparatus of the
best type.