View report page

27
The decreasing percentage of the mortality amongst Scarlet
Fever patients treated in the Board's hospitals continues to be a
noticeable feature, but more noticeable still is the decline in the
percentage mortality amongst Diphtheria patients, from 22.85 in 1895
(when the antitoxic serum treatment was first adopted) to 13.95 in
1899.
The immunity from Small-pox which the Metropolis continues
to enjoy is a matter for sincere congratulation. Of the 28
Small-pox patients sent for admission to hospital during the year, the
diagnosis of Small-pox was confirmed in 10 only, the errors in
diagnosis amounting to 64.3 per cent.
CONSUMPTION.
The amount of consideration and discussion given to the subject
of the prevention of Tuberculosis during the past year or two bears
testimony to the concern with which the more enlightened section of
the community is viewing the restricted and inadequate measures
which have hitherto been taken to check the spread of a disease which
continues to disable and kill a far greater proportion of our population
than any other communicable disease.
In the first place, none of our efforts must be relaxed in the
direction of removing those conditions of site, dwellings, occupation
and food, which promote the prevalence of the disease, seeing that
the work of Sanitary Authorities in that direction has reduced such
prevalance some 40 per cent. among males and some 54 per cent.
among females from 1861-70 to 1891-98. But what is an essential
preliminary to all successful action against a disease with a period
of prolonged infection, and respecting which the necessary preventive
measures must be largely left to individual initiative, is the education
of the public as to the circumstances favouring the individual
susceptibility to the disease and the conveyance of its infection from
the sick to the healthy.