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136
Of the cases whose records are at the Clinic, it will be seen
that of the total number that received sanatorium treatment
during the past five years only 30% are working or fit for work.
The remainder are dead or too ill to work. In those cases with a
positive sputum, i.e., those in whom tubercle bacilli have been
found in the sputum, only 19.9% or less than l-5th are working or
fit for work.
703, or 79.5% of the total cases discharged, were T.B.+ cases;
125, or 14.2% of the total cases discharged, have removed from
the Borough, and as we have no information about their condition
at the end of 1932 they have been ignored in working out the above
percentages.
TUBERCULOSIS CARE COMMITTEE REPORT
During the year 1932 much more use than formerly was made
of the facilities afforded by the Tuberculosis Care Committee.
Assistance and advice are particularly valuable at early stages of
disability, for not only is the patient suffering from the shock of
finding himself tubercular but he has to grapple with a collection
of difficult and unfamiliar problems at a time when he is mentally
and physically under par. There are domestic problems, such as
keeping the home together and the disposal of children when the
patient is away, financial problems, such as the continuance of
building society instalments and insmance premiums, and the
like. Some require direct financial assistance, but there is a large
class soluble by the patients themselves if they only knew the righi
course of action and are given time for reorientation. It is surprising
how ignorant many people are in these matters. Even when
the patient has been put into touch with the proper quarters, there
are often gaps to be tided over and arrears to be made up, so that
a patient's mind is more at rest, a great necessity if he is to obtain
the maximum results from medical treatment. There are tremendous
opportunities for helping a patient at this stage by sympathetic
advice and assistance, and it is satisfactory to note how knowledge
of the Committee's work is filtering through the Borough. As a
tangible result of their efforts, more than a thousand interviews
involving advice and assistance took place during the year, and
nearly 100 families were helped financially. Financial inquiries
numbered over 150, and more than £300 was disbursed.