London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Sutton and Cheam 1953
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Sutton and Cheam]
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Methods employed in clearing four hundred and fifteen premises of rats and mice.
| Poison baits | 398 |
| Trapping | 16 |
| Gassing | 17 |
| Rat and Mouse proofing | 3 |
| Accumulations removed | 2 |
| Other means | 2 |
| Total | 438 |
B - Sewer Treatments
(1) Second Maintenance Treatment (1952-1953) The second
maintenance treatment of soil sewer-manholes in areas known to be
infested from the previous treatment and those sections found to
be infested during the annual 10 per cent test baiting (1952-53),
was completed on the 11th March 1953.
Pre — baiting with damped sausage rusks was carried out on two consecutive days and the same bait base with 2½ per cent Zinc Phosphide added was laid on the third day with the following results:-
| SECTIONS | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | B | C | D | E | Total | |
| Number of Manholes prebaited | 91 | 36 | 85 | 227 | 99 | 538 |
| Complete prebait takes | 1 | 2 | 5 | 9 | 9 | 26 |
| Partial prebait takes | 7 | 3 | 23 | 59 | 16 | 108 |
| Percentage of takes (C. and P.) | 8.8 | 13.9 | 32.9 | 29,9 | 25.2 | 24 9 |
| Number of manholes poison baited | 10 | 11 | 39 | 95 | 36 | 191 |
The number of pre-bait takes shew a decrease of 7.9 per cent
on the previous maintenance treatment.
(2) Test Baiting (1953-54). The Borough was divided into
five sections, as in previous tests, and a test baiting of 10 per
cent of the soil-sewer manholes in areas cleared or thought not
to be infested was carried out during the month of August.
The following is a tabulated summary of the results:-
| SECTIONS | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | B | C | D | E | Total | |
| Number of manholes baited | 10 | 16 | 82 | 40 | 55 | 203 |
| Complete bait takes | - | - | 3 | 2 | - | 5 |
| Partial bait takes | 2 | 1 | 5 | - | 1 | 9 |
| Baits not taken | 8 | 15 | 74 | 38 | 54 | 189 |
(3) First Maintenance Treatment (1953-54). This treatment
was confined to the areas known to have been Infested during the
previous maintenance treatment together with sections proved to
be infested by the annual 10 percent Test, and operations were
completed on the 30th September, 1953.
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