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Prevention of Consumption.—Really active steps to protect the population
against the ravages of consumption seem to have been first taken in 1906, when
the Council, acting on the recommendation of the Public Health Committee
passed a resolution approving the introduction of a system of voluntary notification
of cases of phthisis. The fullest possible use was made of the information
received in this way and a system of visitation for the purposes of advising and
assisting the infected and contacts to prevent spread of infection was commenced.
Since then this work has been continued and extended, the utmost assistance
being given to the women inspectors, to whom it was entrusted, by the voluntary
workers of the St. Marylebone Health Society.
The total number of visits paid during 1910 was 434. At these visits,
in addition to making enquiries into the possible sources of infection, the
duration of the disease, the sanitary condition of the house and so on, advice
was given as to the methods to be adopted by the patient for protecting himself
and those associated with him, and disinfection of clothing, etc., arranged for if
this seemed necessary.
The number of cases in which disinfection was carried out on account of
consumption was 66, and in the majority of instances it was done after the patient
had left the premises for a hospital or had died.
In the report for 1909 note was made of the fact that a proposal to establish
an Anti-Tuberculosis-Dispensary in the Borough had taken shape. It is a pleasure
to be able to report that in November of 1910 the scheme had borne full fruit
and that the dispensary was opened at 15, Allsop Place, N.W., and at the end of
the year was at work. The provisional committee of the dispensary which