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. 28
Local Authorities and their Medical Officers of Health have
been limited in the past to action against actual sufferers from
infection, but their preventive powers are now extended to include
any person connected with food preparation or handling who is
suspected of being a "carrier". Formerly a Medical Officer of
Health could not take action without first informing the Local
Authority, but now he will be able to take immediate action in an
emergency.
DYSENTERY.
During the year 40 notifications of dysentery were received.
Five were subsequently withdrawn, owing to corrected diagnosis ;
and, of the remainder, 24 cases were admitted to hospital and
11 treated at home.
An analysis of the cases notified shows that 12 occurred in
hospitals, eight in "Part III" accommodation, and 15 in private
homes ; whilst bacteriological investigations revealed infection of
the Shigella Sonnet type in 32 instances, Flexner dysentery two,
and not known one.
Outbreak of Sonne Dysentery in School.
Towards the end of November it was reported to me that the
attendance in one class of an Infants' Department of a school was
less than half the children on roll, and that a substantial number
of absentees were said to be suffering from diarrhoea and vomiting.
Investigation showed that the adjaceYit Junior School was free
from infection, and that not only one, but four, classes in the
Infants' Department were affected.
An intensive inspection of the school catering arrangements
revealed no unsatisfactory circumstances in the preparation,
cooking or serving of tlife meals, and no illness or suspected illness
among members of the catering staff. Nor was there any correlation
between school meals and children affected ; in fact, the majority
of the affected children had not been partaking of school meals.
As a result of daily visits to the school, and with the
co-operation of the private medical attendants and the school
attendance officer, the school medical officer and school nurse were
soon able to localise the outbreak without interfering with the
attendance of children who gave no cause for suspicion.