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PREVENTION OF ILLNESS, CARE AND AFTER-CARE
The work under this section of the Act is mainly concerned with
Tuberculosis and I am indebted to Dr. H. D. Palmer, Consultant
Physician to the Wanstead and Woodford Chest Clinic at Harts Hospital
for the following report:—
The work of the Chest Clinic continues as shown by the following:—
Number of X-ray Examinations 4,410
Attendances:
New Contacts 151
Old Contacts 753
Total—Contacts, Notified, Observation 4,880
B.C.G. Vaccinations 85
New Cases Notified 28
Notified Cases transferred in 27
Notified Cases transferred out 15
Deaths 9
Discharged Disease Arrested 2
In my Report of the work of the Chest Clinic during recent years, I
have been happy to announce the continued fall in the numbers of
tuberculous notifications and in 1962 only twenty new patients were
discovered to be suffering from this disease. At the same time, I have
constantly reiterated the need for maintained vigilance, in spite of the
decline in mortality and notification returns and have emphasised that
we must never become complacent in our fight to wipe out what, at one
time, was described as "the greatest Public Health problem of this
Century". Perusal of the statistics shows that the number of new cases
discovered during 1963 has arisen to twenty-eight—a timely warning
that we in the Public Health and Chest Clinics Services must never
relax our efforts in the control of Tuberculosis.
Each year, this Report has included a few details of cases of interest
in the field of Tuberculosis. Here are four cases which again emphasise
the importance of continued contact supervision at the Clinic.
A husband developed Tuberculosis and was admitted to Harts
Hospital. His daughter, aged 2, was found to have primary lung
Tuberculosis and was transferred to the Children's Unit, Black
Notley Hospital. The remainder of the family kept under Clinic
supervision and six months later his wife was found to have
Pulmonary Tuberculosis: she also had to be admitted for treatment.
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