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Infectious Diseases. The Wandle Valley Joint Hospital
situated at Beddington Corner, Mitcham, maintained conjointly
by the following districts:—
Beddington and Wallington Borough;
Coulsdon and Purley Urban;
Merton and Morden Urban;
Mitcham Borough.
This hospital suffered a reduction in accommodation owing
to the discontinuance of a cubicle block which reduced the
available accommodation under war conditions, to 122 beds. In
addition to a numerical reduction of beds this is liable to impose
a special strain on isolation facilities. Another factor governing
hospital accommodation which has operated to the disadvantage
of the Wandle Valley Isolation Hospital has been the shortage
of nursing staff. Even under these difficulties however the
hospital has maintained its previous service. One ward has been
altered to provide for admission of 10 cases of Typhus, in the
event of an outbreak of that disease, and arrangements for the
delousing and cleansing of contacts for the district has also been
provided at the hospital. In 1943, 238 cases were admitted
from this district compared with 247 in 1942.