View report page

88
The number of children reported as being verminous by the school authorities
during 1910 was 424, and during 1911 the number rose to 729. In all cases the homes
of the children were visited by the sanitary inspectors, and the necessary steps
were taken for disinfection and cleansing. This work which must be regarded as
very important and necessary has taken up a far larger part of the time of the
sanitary inspectors than was the case before 1910.
The orders of the Local Government Board as to pulmonary tuberculosis are
three in number. The first embodies the Public Health (Tuberculosis) Regulations,
1908. These regulations make the notification of cases of consumption occurring
amongst patients treated under the poor law compulsory. They have been in
operation since January 1st, 1909. The number of cases which have been certified
under these regulations were 313 in 1909, 241 in 1910, and 292 in 1911. Many of
these were cases treated whilst residing at home. As far as practicable the homes
were visited by the sanitary inspectors and health visitor, and steps taken in accordance
with the regulations.
The second of the orders embodies the Public Health (Tuberculosis in Hospitals)
Regulations, 1911, which makes it compulsory to notify all patients suffering from
consumption who are attending hospitals for treatment. These regulations came
into operation on May 1st, 1911, and from that date to the end of the year some
289 persons resident in Shoreditch were notified to be suffering from the disease.
The homes of these patients also have to be visited. It must, however, be pointed
out that the work under these regulations is especially heavy in Shoreditch owing
to the existence of a hospital for diseases of the chest within the Borough. The
regulations provide that certificates as to cases have to be sent to the Medical Officer
of Health of the district in which the hospital or hospitals are situate, and it is for
him to send the certificates on to the Medical Officers of Health of the various sanitary
districts in which the patients are resident. The Health Department of Shoreditch
has consequently become a clearing house for certificates relating to cases which
may be resident in any part of London or the Country. It need hardly be stated
that this has greatly added to the amount of clerical work.
The third set of regulations is the Public Health (Tuberculosis) Regulations,
1911, which make the notification of cases of consumption occurring amongst
private patients of medical practitioners compulsory. This came into operation
on January 1st of the current year, and made a further addition to the work to be
undertaken.
As far as practicable, houses where consumptive patients are resident are visited,
and as far as existing means will permit of, advice and assistance are rendered.
There have been tangible results in a small number of instances, but only a small
number. The work, unfortunately, in this direction can only be looked upon as
relatively insignificant when compared with what ought to be done. As a matter