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63
The special precautions to which reference was made in the last Annual Report
were again adopted with a view to preventing the spread of infectious illness.
Ihree cases of scarlet fever occurred in December at the Mayford industrial
school, and at Ponton-road place of detention six cases were reported during October,
November and December.
Industrial
schools and
place of
detention.
The affected children were removed to the Council's hospitals and appropriate
action was taken to prevent any spread of infection.
The few sporadic cases of infectious illness that occurred in the schools during
the year do not call for special comment.
Ihe Education Committee, in June, authorised the immunisation of the children
in the residential special schools on the same lines as at the residential (transferred)
schools to which reference is made below.
Residential
special
schools.
ihree medical officers from the Council s hospital service who had had previous
experience of active immunisation undertook the supervision of the work until
the medical officers of the school had received the training necessary to enable them
to assume the duties themselves.
The material required was supplied from the Belmont laboratories as in the
case of the residential schools and children's homes. The work of obtaining the
necessarv parental consents was carried out bv the school attendance staff.

N.B.—In 21 cases the process of immunisation had not been completed on 31st December,
1932.
The scheme adopted for the prevention of the spread of infectious diseases in
the residential schools, children's homes and children's receiving homes transferred
from the various authorities to the control of the Council on 1st April, 1930, was
outlined in the last Annual Report. This scheme was put into operation in July,
1931, and, in May, 1932, the medical officers in charge of these schools were invited
to attend a conference to discuss questions relating thereto, and it was decided that
the advisability or otherwise of modifying the arrangements should be considered
later when further experience had been obtained.
Residential
(transferred)
schools,
children's
homes and
children's
receiving
homes.
A brief review of the incidence of infectious illnesses in the residential schools
and children's homes during 1932 is set out below. It may here be stated that
all cases of infectious illness (except impetigo and scabies) occurring in these
institutions are removed to one or other of the Council's special hospitals.
Diphtheria.—Cases of diphtheria were reported from some of the schools during
the year. Arrangements were made for the swabbing of contacts where considered
necessary, and the facilities afforded by the Council's laboratory at the County Hall
were placed at the disposal of the medical officers of the institutions.
Diphtheria investigations were undertaken in 15 schools during the year,
and a total of 1,583 children and 39 adults were bacteriologically examined by
throat and nose culture ; while in 13 of the children suffering from otorrhoea, cultures
were taken also from the ears. Positive results were obtained from 95 children,
or 6 per cent., including 10 ear cultures, and 1,488 or 94 per cent, proved negative ;
while 3 adults showed organisms morphologically indistinguishable from diphtheria
bacilli, and the other 36 were negative. Subsequent examination of 20 of the positives
yielded 17 still positive.