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give advice, and collect data in respect to the notified cases of
Tuberculosis; but such data are of little value, and the advice
we offer does little good if we have no time for following up the
visits and otherwise securing that the most is being done both
for the patient and for those who may otherwise be exposed to
serious risks. It will be a great loss to the public health if we
are to become more and more recording machines and less and less
practical workers.
ACUTE POLIO-MYELITIS AND CEREBRO-SPINAL
FEVER.
These two diseases, which had previously been made compulsorily
notifiable by many Local Authorities, were required to
be generally notified by a General Order of the Local Government
Board, which took effect on September 1st, 1912. The reasons
for making these diseases compulsorily notifiable were discussed
at length in my Annual Report for 1911.
THE DISINFECTING AND CLEANSING STATION.
During the year ending December 31st, 1912, the following
disinfecting and cleansing work was performed at the station :—
Total number of textile articles disinfected 11,560
Total number of books from Public Library disinfected
91
Total number of verminous persons cleansed 551
Of the verminous persons cleansed, all were children of school
ages.
In addition to the disinfection of rooms on account of the
compulsorily notifiable diseases, 147 rooms were fumigated on
account of vermin, 27 on account of consumption, and 12 on
account of cancer.