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Typhoid.
During June a case of typhoid was diagnosed in a St Pancras resident who
had returned from a holiday abroad This lady was associated with the hotel
trade which made it all the more important to ascertain the source of the disease
and prevent its possible spread, Her story was that she had travelled to Paris
by air. and thence by coach to Spain, in which country she had visited several
towns She was a member of a conducted tour The incubation period indicated that
she had contracted the disease either in Paris or in Spain.
Immediate steps were taken to ascertain the names and addresses of all the
members of the party and I then communicated with the Medical Officers of Health
of the districts in which they lived. As a result two other members of the party
were diagnosed as suffering from typhoid, the type of typhoid germ being
similar to that which had infected the St Pancras resident We were in contact
with both the French and the Spanish Embassies in order that we should be able
to ascertain the incidence of typhoid in the towns and districts where this
coach stopped Altogether a total of seven cases were traced who had been to
Spain during this particular period three, as set out above, in this very
coach tour At one time it had been hoped to pin point the source of the epidemic
to one particular restaurant in a town in Spain, but further evidence showed
that not all the cases had eaten at this restaurant.
The Council will realise that the investigation was widespread, and I would
wish to express my appreciation to the touring company and the French and
Spanish Embassies who gave every possible assistance. I also received considerable
help and advice from the Ministry of Health and the Public Health Laboratories
at Colindale to whom I am much indebted
Mortuary and Coroner's Court
At the time of writing this report work is proceeding upon the construction
of a modern disinfecting station and mortuary It is hoped that this will be
completed before the end of 1956 Plans have also been prepared for providing
the Coroner s Officers and the public with better accommodation.
Slum Clearance
One of the most important tasks which fell upon the Department during 1955
was that in connection with slum clearance. Part I of the Housing Repairs and
Rents Act 1954 requires the London County Council and each Metropolitan
Borough Council to submit to the Minister of Housing and Local Government a
joint programme for dealing with the houses within the Borough which appear to
be unfit for human habitation This necessitated a complete inspection by our
staff of the whole Borough which was duly carried out
The scheme which was prepared by the Public Health Department included 23
areas consisting of 713 houses accommodating 3 501 persons. This scheme was
discussed between me and the representatives of the Public Health Department of
the London County Council in accordance with an agreement between the County
and the Metropolitan Boroughs As a result of this a programme was prepared
consisting of those areas which it was hoped could be dealt with within a period
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