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REPORTS BY THE DIVISIONAL MEDICAL OFFICERS
(A statistical summary of work done in the divisions will be found at the end of this section.)
DIVISION 1, comprising the boroughs of Chelsea, Fulham, Hammersmith and
Kensington
Dr. Bertha E. A. Sharpe reports:
Diphtheria—Early in the year there was an outbreak of diphtheria involving the Kensington
training centre, with places for 100 mentally handicapped children aged from 5 to 15.
Although the number of children is relatively small, the centre is attended by severely subnormal
children from a large part of North London.
On 7 February one of the children was diagnosed as suffering from diphtheria. A medical
team immediately examined and swabbed all those attending or visiting the centre, including
all staff, meals service personnel and other close or likely contacts. About 60 per cent. of
the children had been immunised in the past and were given a booster dose of diphtheria
prophylactic. Those not immunised were given a protective dose of anti-toxin and the
first of a course of immunising injections. Swabbing was extended to absentees, to all
family contacts of those attending the centre, to the older girls attending North Kensington
training centre, some of whom shared transport with children from the Kensington centre,
and to the classmates of siblings of positive cases. The search for possibly infected children
included certain parties and social groups known to have been attended by infected
children during the period in which the infection might have been transmitted. Swabbing
of the children at the centre continued at 48-hourly intervals.
There were 16 clinical cases in all; six in Islington, five in St. Pancras, two in Hammersmith
and one each in Paddington, Kensington and Westminster. Unfortunately there
were three deaths (all children from Kensington training centre); four clinical cases and
nine carriers received hospital treatment, of these one clinical case and two carriers lived
in this division.
As usual, there was the closest co-operation both with the borough medical officers
concerned and with other divisional medical officers, who were notified daily of centre
absentees living in their areas.
Because of the wide area from which the centre was attended the County Medical
Officer of Health informed all general medical practitioners in London of the outbreak.
As a result of the publicity which accrued there were increased attendances at immunisation
sessions and additional facilities were provided in divisional establishments. During
the last two weeks of February 2,412 persons were immunised, as compared with 657 in
the corresponding fortnight of 1960.
In the course of the investigation health-visiting staff in the division visited some 200
homes and took more than 500 swabs; some 700 swabs were taken in the training centre
and about 3,000 were taken throughout the division.
Vaccination against poliomyelitis—Instruction was received early in the year that a
fourth injection was to be offered to parents for children entering school between their
fifth and twelfth birthdays. It was decided that as far as practicable the whole age group
eligible should be vaccinated before the summer season when the risk of contracting
poliomyelitis is greatest. With the co-operation of heads of schools two vaccination teams
visited each school in the division and by the end of the summer term 10,458 fourth injections
had been given.
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