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SMALLPOX IN SWEDEN
Stockholm was declared a smallpox infected local area in accordance with Article 3 of the
International Sanitary Regulations, after confirmation on 15th May, of the diagnosis of a case in
that area, and was pronounced 'free from infection' on 5th August. During this period it was
necessary to maintain a rigid control on all vessels arriving from Sweden.
In the summer season there is a regular service carrying approximately 350 passengers to
and from Sweden (three return voyages per week), in addition to which U.S.S.R. vessels carry
approximately 150 passengers from Leningrad via Stockholm weekly. These 4 ships berthed
at Tilbury Landing Stage. In addition many smaller vessels arrived in the Port of London from
Sweden.
Instructions were issued to Boarding Medical Officers to the effect that all passengers and
crew arriving from the infected area must be checked to ensure that they were in possession
of valid International Vaccination Certificates or had been vaccinated recently, otherwise
vaccination should be offered. Anyone who declined vaccination was to be placed under surveillance.
All passengers and crew were to be questioned as to the likelihood of their having been
in contact with one of the cases of smallpox and if so they were to be asked to complete a
surveillance card giving their address in this country.
Although this procedure was normally carried out by the Boarding Medical Officer at Gravesend,
occasionally a ship was allowed to berth and the Port Health Inspector in the area carried
out the necessary checking.
Fortunately, the majority of passengers and crews had valid International Vaccination
Certificates but nevertheless over 300 persons were placed under surveillance and many were
vaccinated.
The arrangements worked very smoothly and there was little, if any, delay to shipping.
SECTION VII
SMALLPOX
1. Name of Isolation Hospital to which smallpox cases are sent from the District.
Long Reach Hospital is situated on the south bank of the River Thames about eight miles
above Gravesend. The hospital consists of 10 ward blocks capable of accommodating 170
patients but, except in cases of emergency, only three ward blocks (2 of 20 beds and 1, a cubicle
ward of 10 beds), total 50 beds, are kept available for immediate use. The hospital includes
residential quarters for the staff and a laundry, although the administration and staffing is
carried out from Joyce Green Hospital, Dartford.
2. Arrangements for transport of such cases to that hospital by ambulance giving the name of
the Authority responsible for the ambulance and the vaccinal state of the ambulance crews.
A case or cases of smallpox would be removed from the vessel by this Authority's Ambulance
launch and conveyed ashore via the pontoon at Denton and from thence conveyed by road ambulance
direct to Long Reach Hospital.
The Port Health Authority would be responsible for the vaccinal state of their Ambulance
Launch crews, while the vaccinal state of the Road Ambulance personnel would be the concern
of the South-east Metropolitan Regional Hospital Board under whose jurisdiction both Joyce
Green and Long Reach Hospitals fall.
3. Names of smallpox consultants available.
Dr. J.V. Armstrong Dr. H.S. Banks Dr. J.D. Kershaw
Dr. W.J. Coughlan Dr. W.T.G. Boul Dr. J.P. Marsden
Dr. A. Melvin Ramsay
4. Facilities for laboratory diagnosis of smallpox.
Facilities are available at the Virus Laboratory at the Central Public Health Laboratory
at Colindale.
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