View report page

23
the removal of the latter to hospital the children at No. 45 began
to fail, and within the next few days no fewer than seven of them
were attacked with scarlet fever. Everything that was possible in
the way of speedy removal to hospital, disinfection of rooms and
clothing and the giving of instructions regarding the isolation of
children showing signs of becoming ill, was carried out in these
cases, but most of the children were already infected before the
opportunity occurred for putting these measures into operation.
In February 5 cases were reported from one house and 4 from
another, and in both instances on visiting the families after the
receipt of the first notification, a previous unrecognised case was
found.
It is unreasonable to expect any mother to say definitely whether
a given case is one of scarlet fever or not, but it is not an unreasonable
requirement, indeed it is one of her first duties as a mother,
that she should be able to recognise the common warning signs of
the ordinary infectious diseases and take them as the signal for
separating the affected child from other members of the family. In
the pamphlet recently issued ny the Council, a copy of which will
be found appended, I made a special note of these elementary signs,
and the slightest acquaintance with them should have been sufficient
to warn the mothers of most of these overlooked patients, of the
real nature of their illness; for a history of sore throat, vomiting
and general feverishness was obtainable in the majority of them.
But even in those cases that were recognized by the mother there
was too often a want of care shown in keeping the affected child
apart from others until the doctor arrived and arrangements had
been made for its isolation. Owing to this neglect many secondary
cases occurred that a little intelligence and foresight might have
prevented. It is hoped that the efforts now being made to instruct
the mothers of families in these matters may in course of time effect
a great improvement in domestic knowledge of this kind.
Nine of the cases notified were associated with the return of a