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47
The head teachers are at once informed of cases of notifiable
diseases occurring in children attending their departments, and
contacts can therefore be forthwith excluded.
The attendance officers inform the school medical officer of
any children who have recently been kept at home with illness of a
suspicious character or concerning whom circumstances suggest
vhe possibility of infection.
A register of the non-notifiable diseases, Measles, Chickenpox,
Whooping Cough, and Mumps is kept in the school medical
officer's department. The entries in this register are made from
notification forms sent by the school teachers. The accuracy of
these notifications is verified by the attendance officers, who consult
the Medical Officer in all cases of doubt.
During the year 1920 both Scarlet Fever and Diphtheria were
very prevalent in the London area, and East Ham was affected in
common with other districts. As the occurrence of a case of either
of the above-named diseases in a house leads to the automatic
exclusion from school for a time of any scholars in that house the
effect of this epidemic is certain to be reflected in the average
school attendance for the year.
In addition to the recognised infectious diseases there are a
number of contagious diseases for which scholars are also excluded.
During the year 1,060 exclusion forms were issued to children