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16
3rd. As he was up and about waiting for transfer, his temperature
was not further recorded. From his own statement there would
appear to have been spots during that period.
On his admission to the Infirmary the spots were noticed, and
the Medical Officer's (a temporary locum) attention was called to
them. The condition was diagnosed as a crop of Septic Spots, and
well rubbed with the sulphur ointment prescribed.
The man wanted his discharge and was allowed to go on
October 6th. He walked to Epsom and was admitted to the Casual
Ward.
It appears that a man in the scabbing stage was an inmate of
the " Welcome Stranger" on or about the 16th September.
Whilst the patient was up and about, many visitors were in the
Ward on visiting day, and as he was allowed out in the ground he
roamed about. The list of contacts in the Institution was in consequence
very large.
In the meantime, a number of casuals and patients had been
discharged and had to be followed up. Kingston, Redhiil, Reading,
Bracknell, London, East Grinstead, Horsham, Guildford, Chertsey,
Dorking, Chiswick, Ealing, Hanwell, Hackney, Teddington, Woolwich,
Edgware, Slough, being the districts involved.
The patient's clothes had been sent to the Union Laundry
where many of the workers were non-resident. In addition many
of the attendants were non-resident; incidentally the attendant
whose duty it was to rub the sulphur ointment into the rash had not
been vaccinated for 25 years.
The Medical Superintendent of the Brentford Union and his
Staff set to work and vaccinated practically all the contacts.
All the outside contacts were referred to the Public Vaccinator
or their own Doctor and vaccinated.
One woman contact who had visited the ward gave rise to some
suspicion. She suffered from Acne but later developed a temperature
with ache and pains and two suspicious spots. She was admitted
to Dockwell as a precaution. The symptoms turned out to be due
to the vaccination and she was discharged after 3 days.