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4
the public can do much to improve the health and well-being of
the community. In the simple case of a mild type of dysentery
which keeps recurring at intervals in the community, observance
of simple rules of hygiene should considerably limit its spread. The
infection is excreted by the patient and surely, in most cases, it
must be within our capabilities to prevent this reaching other
members of the family. If it does occur, someone has been careless
and the method of transmission needs no comment.
The number of notifications of notifiable infectious diseases
was somewhat lower than the previous year in spite of the increased
number of cases of pneumonia and whooping cough.
The number of cases of Scarlet Fever was about half that of the
previous year, and Poliomyelitis, to which I refer elsewhere in this
report, was less prevalent.
With regard to the Enteric Fever group of infections, in which
the control of water, milk and food can play an important role, the
stage has been reached where only occasional fluctuations in the
extremely low incidence draw comments. In fact, there have only
been six cases and no deaths during the last nine years.
There was, unfortunately, an increase in the number of cases
of Respiratory Tuberculosis, but this was accompanied, I am glad
to say, by the remarkably low figure of only eleven deaths from
the disease.
Recent successful vaccination is a safeguard against Smallpox
and Public Health workers rely on that in their dealings with cases
of Smallpox. It is true that outbreaks of Smallpox are infrequent
nowadays, and because of this and the comparatively high mortality
rate of the disease, even a single suspected case is given great
publicity. I do not think it is fully realised the number of contacts
of Smallpox or suspected cases that arrive in the district and who
require surveillance. It may be too late to give these contacts
adequate protection by vaccination even if the Medical Officer of
Health visits and vaccinates immediately he is informed. But
what is more unfortunate is the number of such people who have
never been vaccinated. Now, primary vaccination in an infant is
a comparatively simple and safe procedure, but unfortunately,
primary vaccination in older persons may have certain slight risks,
but the M.O.H. faced with an unvaccinated contact of Smallpox
can but attempt to give adequate protection. This difficulty would
be materially reduced if infant vaccination were more popular. Of
the 780 primary vaccinations carried out during the year, 592 were
in children under the age of 2 years, most of the remainder being