London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Shoreditch 1903
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Shoreditch]
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were destroyed and new ones were supplied in their place by the Borough Council.
The great difference between the amount of disinfection in 1903, as compared with the
amounts for 1902 and 1901, is mainly due to the absence of small-pox in the
Borough in 1903.
Towards the end of December, spraying the walls of infected rooms with formalin
solution (2 per cent.) was substituted for fumigation with sulphur fumes. An
"Invicta" sprayer, supplied by Messrs. Lumley and Co., is being used at present for
this purpose. It takes from five to twenty minutes, according to size, to thoroughly
spray a room, whereas fumigation with sulphur under ordinary circumstances requires
about eight hours, and in some cases a good deal longer, for effective action. According
to the results of experiments made by bacteriologists, formalin solution of a
strength of 2 per cent. is very satisfactory as a germicide. The change in the practice
as to dealing with infected rooms promises well, but a longer experience is necessary
before a definite opinion can be pronounced as to the result.
THE SHELTER.
The following are the particulars as to the use of the shelter in Reeve's Place during the year:—
| Date of admission to Shelter. | Length of stay therein. | Number of Persons. | Address from which the persons were admitted to the Shelter. | Disease. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 16 | 1 day | 6 | 6, Barton Court | Enteric Fever |
| September' 14 | 1 night | 3 | 4, Canal Road | Scarlet Fever |
| October 8 | 1 night | 2 | 30, Fairbank Street | Scarlet Fever |
| November 2 | 1 night | 3 | 1, Collingwood Street | Scarlet Fever |
The shelter was used on four occasions by 14 persons belonging to four families.
THE PUBLIC MORTUARY.
The dead bodies taken into the mortuary numbered 450, and included the bodies
of three persons removed by the Sanitary Authority on account of infection or
to prevent nuisance. The number of bodies deposited in the mortuary during
the previous six years were as follows:—444 in 1902, 420 in 1901, 443 in 1900, 494 in
1899, 446 in 1898, and 421 in 1897. The post-mortem examinations made in the