View report page

121
(2) A resident in the City was notified as suffering from food poisoning,
following a dinner party held at a restaurant in Westminster.
Food consumed included oysters, fish and kidneys, but
inquiries disclosed that none of the other participants had been
affected. The restaurant premises were clean and the stock
was in a satisfactory condition.
(3) Sixty residents of an educational establishment outside of the
City were affected after a meal comprising several different
articles of food amongst which were minced meat and figs
supplied by a firm in "Westminster. An unconsumed portion
of the minced meat was bacteriologically examined with
negative results. Samples of minced meat and figs taken at
the firm's premises also gave negative results upon examination.
(4) A meat pie purchased at a coffee stall in the City was suspected
to be the cause of a case in another district. A pie of the
same make was purchased at the stall and submitted for
bacteriological examination, but the result was negative.
(5) One case attributed to the consumption of tinned salmon occurred
in the City. A tin of the same brand of salmon upon examination
was found to be in a satisfactory condition.
(6) Notification was received of a suspected case of food poisoning in
the person of an operator at a telephone exchange. On
inquiry it was found that some 53 other employees had been
affected after a meal of boiled beef consumed in the staff
canteen. The remaining portion of the beef was examined
by the Council's bacteriologist who expressed the opinion that
the most probable cause of the epidemic was " staphylococcal
toxin " consumed in the meat. The premises of the butcher
from whom the meat had been obtained, situated in St. Pancras,
were inspected by the Medical Officer of Health of that Borough
and samples of meat and pickling brine were taken for examination,
but no obvious source of contamination was discovered.
In all except the one notified case, the persons concerned were
only mildly affected and returned to duty on the following day.