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84
V I.—Phthisis.
86 notifications have been received from various sources.
35 from Poor Law officials.
27 ,, L.C.C. officials.
16 ,, Hospitals.
2 the Charity Organisation Society.
3 voluntarily from patients.
3 discovered in the course of other work.
49 patients were women, 10 men. and 27 children under fourteen years
of age.
The Poor Law notifications above refer to women only, to whom my work in
this connection has been limited.
Six patients have been sent to sanatoria and 2 to invalid homes by the Charity
Organisation Society ; 3 to sanatoria by the Invalid Children's Aid Association ;
3 have arranged privately for open-air treatment. Twelve have died ; 8 in the
infirmary, 4 in their own homes.
My aim in visiting phthisical patients is to teach them how to improve their
health as far as possible and how to minimise the risk of infecting others. Frequently
it is impossible for people to do all that they wish to in providing separate sleeping
accommodation for a phthisical member of a family ; often they cannot afford to
rent a separate room, or even to buy a separate bed. especially when the patient is
or should be the wage earner.
Some phthisical patients w ho are at an advanced stage enter the infirmary or
a home for the dying ; but main' remain in their own homes for a long while, working
when their health permits.
Sources of Infection.
In 45 of the 86 cases investigated it has been possible to some extent to account
for the source of infection.
Direct Contact.
(i.) In 21 cases this appeared to be due to direct contact with other phthisical
patients, 19 of these being members of The same family. Of the other two, one had
nursed phthisical patients on two occasions ; the other had worked next to a man
suffering from phthisis, who declined to take any precautions. It is satisfactory to
report that sanatorium treatment has so far been successful in the last case.