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47
The number of new canteers over the past lew years has necessarily
risen coincident with the expansion of the new school programme, and
whilst naturally the standard of these canteens is generally of a high
order, one or two instances come readily to mind and have been reported
upon where minor blemishes are thought to exist.
The fact that a canteen is new should not be held to imply that it
is necessarily perfect, and perfection even in matters of school canteens
—if it is ever attainable—is only attainable through the hard path of
learning from mistakes.
A further minor point I would make on school canteens is that in
my view if the sanitary accommodation for the staff of these canteens
is to be satisfactory it is better to be exclusively used by that staff and
must be adequate and readily accessible. The sharing of sanitary
amenities between teachers and canteen staff, however economical it
might appear occasionally at first sight, is not in my view a satisfactory
arrangement.
SECTION F.
PREVALENCE OF AND CONTROL OVER INFECTIOUS
AND OTHER NOTIFIABLE DISEASES.
It is always interesting to compare the number of the common
infections with the passing years and on reference to the Council report
covering, it is true, districts other than (although including) Hornchurch
and comprising the old Romford Rural District with a population of
20,415, it is found that in the year 1904 the incidence of three diseases
was as follows :
Diphtheria : 179 cases, 95 of which were hospitalised and 9 of
which died ; Scarlet Fever : 144 cases, 140 being hospitalised and 4
died ; and Enteric Fever : 12 cases, 4 of which went to hospital. As
we now see, Diphtheria has for the present at least, almost ceased to
be a Public Health problem. This is doubtless contributed to substantially
by immunisation, but—although I have not got the exact figures
—it seems doubtful whether the number of young children immunised
maintains a sufficiently high level to attribute the absence of the disease
entirely to this factor. It is in any event within the last 20 years that
Diphtheria has ceased to be a menace.
Scarlet Fever, as will be seen from this year's figures, still pursues
its steady course, although it is becoming milder in type and it is many
years since four deaths from this cause occurred.
Enteric also, which in 1904 provided 12 cases, is a relative rarity
and seems now to occur occasionally in explosive outbreaks of a
relatively isolated character and in odd individual cases without
ascertainable cause. So long as " carriers," discovered or undiscovered,
remain with us, so long will there be a trouble potential from this
disease.
Among the common infectious diseases the most noteworthy
feature has been the exceedingly low number (81) of Measles cases
notified in 1954 as against the figures for the preceding three years