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Here again, after explaining the circumstances to the Emergency Bed Service they readily
agreed to arrange ambulance conveyance and admission of the patient to hospital. These arrangements
they concluded within an hour and the patient was admitted to the Eastern Hospital,
Homerton, E.9.
Admission to Hospital of Patients taken off ships at the Gravesend Quarantine Station
The growth of specialism and the increasing use of diagnostic aids in clinical work (laboratory
tests, X-ray, etc.) has affected diagnosis in infectious diseases no less than in other branches
of medicine and indeed because of their potential effect on the community, their prompt and
accurate diagnosis is even more desirable than it is for other diseases which inflict only the
individual.
Thus, when your Medical Officer investigated a small outbreak of paratyphoid fever on a
vessel which arrived during the latter part of 1955, he was able to get off to a very quick start
by arranging for the patient, provisionally diagnosed as a case of "Fever of unknown origin",
to be admitted to the Thurrock Hospital, where modern diagnostic facilities with laboratory
tests were available immediately upon admission of the patient with resulting prompt and accurate
diagnosis which was telephoned to your Medical Officer as soon as made.
Experience has shown that modern diagnostic facilities are not available at Denton Hospital,
It is also inconvenient, sometimes impossible, to use it in inclement weather either because of
difficulty in disembarking the patient from the ship to the launch or in getting the patient from
the launch to Denton Hospital pontoon. At one period during the year the pontoon was unusable
owing to gale damage.
At such times, Tilburty Landing Stage has been used and the patient conveyed thence either
by road to Thurrock Hospital, Essex or by car ferry and road to Denton, though in my opinion
with so little difference in the road distance once the Gravesend side was reached, it would
have been better to admit that patient direct to Joyce Green Hospital whence he would have to
be transferred in any event, if at all seriously ill.
This led your Medical Officer to recommend to your Worshipful Committee that in future all
seriously ill and/or mysteriously ill patients taken off ships in Gravesend Reach, and indeed all
patients in ships arriving in gales or blizzards, be admitted direct either to Joyce Green Hospital
or to Thurrock Hospital.
At Thurrock Hospital they would be under the care of Dr. W.T.C. Boul who has given the
Authority many years of excellent service, officially as Smallpox Consultant to the Ministry of
Health, but informally as infectious disease consultant in "mysterious" cases of infectious
disease other than smallpox.
In this connection Your Worshipful Committee concurred in the further recommendations of your
Medical Officer that Dr. Boul, who was already Infectious Disease Consultant to the North-East
Metropolitan Hospital Board be appointed in a similar capacity to the Port Health Authority of
the Port of London.
Since Dr. Boul was appointed early in 1956 his services as a Consultant have only been
required on one occasion, again a patient diagnosed on arrival to be suffering from a "Fever of
Unknown Origin" (see report on Duch s.s. "Cornelia B.3") and in this instance it is probably
true to say that he owed his life to the prompt diagnosis of his condition that was made at Gravesend
and the vigorous anti-malarial treatment he was given in Thurrock Hospital under the care
of Dr. Boul.
SECTION X — Observations on the occurrence of Malaria in ships
Twenty-six cases of malaria were reported on fourteen vessels during the year under review
as compared with twenty-five cases on sixteen vessels during 1955. Twenty-three of the cases
occurred amongst members of the crew and three among passengers. Twenty of the cases
were disposed of prior to the arrival of the vessels in this Port.
Prevention of Malaria and Mosquito Control
Although no cases of indigenous malaria have occurred in this country since the period immediately
following the first world war, it has long been recognised that potentialities for infection
have continued around the Thames Estuary by reason of the swampy ground and the breeding
of mosquitoes there of the type which, under certain circumstances could carry malarial infection.
This danger was early recognised by the Kent Oil Refinery when they built their establishment
on the Isle of Grain where, thanks to their enterprise, energetic measures have been taken to
stamp out the mosquito infestation in that area.
Owing to the cordial relationship between the Port of London Health Authority and the Company
over a period of years it has been possible to second the Authority's district Health Inspector
for the area, Mr. P.A. Traynier, to assist the staff employed by the Kent Oil Refinery, in
mosquito control measures.
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