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34
Disinfecting- Station. In March, the Engineer announced the
completion of the new one, commenced in November, 1915, in the Town Hall
Yard, at the back of the Baths, but not communicating, the cost of which
had been defrayed out of the current rate. It was taken over by the Public
Health Department and put to use on 20th April. The mortuary keeper,
C. Hickford, attends to it. There is a boiler, independent of steam supply
from the Baths, and the Engineer devised an accessory fire outside, for consuming
the fumes from the disinfector.
Our methods of house disinfection are stated in my report for 1914.
Disinfectants continue to be supplied to callers, mostly children, on the
same lavish scale as heretofore. The saving of a few pounds in printing
this report, by condensation and omission of interesting facts, does not
compensate for the waste of several hundred pounds in mal-odorous compounds.
PEURPERAL FEVER.
Twenty-five cases were notified; of these, 4 were Edmonton women, of
whom 3 died. Our death-rate is therefore 1.84 per thousand nett births;
it was 3.00 last year.
I must say a few words with reference to the very large increase of
this serious disease, viz., 25 cases notified compared with only 7 last year.
Of these, no less than 23 out of the 25 were received from the Edmonton
Workhouse and Infirmary, of which only 2 were Edmonton women; there were
also 4 Belgian refugees, and 17 from other districts of the Union, including
10 from Tottenham.
I am inclined to think that the increase is more apparent than real,,
and is largely due to the fact that the Acting Medical Superintendent (Dr.
Gregorson) realises that the term "puerperal fever" in the Registrar-General's
classification of deaths, Class "137," includes 30 septic conditions. [I am
rather at a loss to know why "milk fever" should be one of them, as that
term usually refers to a physiological condition merely arising with the onset
of milk to the mover's breasts.]
During 1915 there were 264 midwives practising privately in Middlesex
and 447 not practising; besides, there were 15 engaged in poor-law infirmaries,
who are exempt from the provisions of the Act. In Edmonton there were 16
practising at the beginning of 1915 and 12 at the end of that year.
One midwife was removed from the midwives' roll by the Central Midwives'
Board, and 5 were cautioned by letter and 14 verbally. During that
year no uncertified women were prosecuted by the County Council for acting
as midwives, but 15 were verbally cautioned by the Inspector of Midwives,.
Miss Pollard.