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(whether at an institution or otherwise) are required, within forty-eight
hours after first becoming aware that such person is suffering from
tuberculosis to notify the case to the Medical Officer of Health of the
district, unless he has grounds for believing that the ease has already
been notified. In the case of patients at institutions, the notification
must be sent to the Medical Officer of Health for the district in which
the place of residence of the person is situated.
School Medical Inspectors are required to furnish weekly notifications
of all cases of tuberculosis of which they first become
aware in the course of their inspections of children attending public
ele.nentary schools, to the Medical Officer of Health for the district
in which the place of residence of the children is situated.
Medical Officers of poor law institutions and of sanatoria are
required, as soon as practicable after the end of each week, to notify
all cases of tuberculosis admitted during the week, and not being cases
which are required to be notified under Article V. of the regulations, to
the Medical Officer of Health for the district within which the places of
residence of the persons notified are situate; and also to notify all cases
of tuberculosis discharged during the week, other than cases transferred
to a poor law institution or a sanatorium, to the Medical Officer of
Health for the district within which the places of destination of the
persons notified are situated.
The expression "Sanatorium" is defined in the regulations as
meaning a residential institution, approved by the Local Government
Board under the National Insurance Act, 1911, for the treatment of
tuberculosis; and the expression "Poor Law Institution" as meaning a
Workhouse, a Workhouse Infirmary, or other building subject to the
government of a Board of Guardians of a Poor Law Union, or of
a Joint Committee, or an Asylum (not being a lunatic asylum) or School
subject to the government of a Board of Managers.
It is a matter for regret that these requirements were not made
applicable to all residential institutions that undertake the treatment
of tuberculous persons, as the partial information that I already receive,
which relates only to patients admitted to or discharged from
sanatoria and poor law institutions, is found to be of considerable
assistance in keeping touch with the movements of tuberculous persons