View report page

33
In order to help the local authorities in dealing with the outbreak
of small-pox then prevailing in the Metropolis, the London School
Board, on the 23rd of September, after representations from the
Local Government Board passed the following resolutions:—
"That facilities be given to the Public Vaccination Officers of the
Metropolis, on the application of the proper local authority, to enter
the schools of the Board in infected areas, for the purpose of examining
the arms of the children, with a view to advising the parents to
allow their children to be vaccinated, provided that the School Board
issue a circular to the parents of the children asking if they have any
objection to this examination, and, in the case of such objection in any
particular case, that such examination shall take place, and that the
Local Government Board and the Public Vaccination Officers be informed
accordingly."
On receipt of a copy of this resolution, I recommended the Hackney
Local Authority to take advantage of the School Board's offer and to
have such of the children attending the Boards Schools in the
Borough, whose parents did not object, examined, in order to get
those vaccinated who were found unprotected. The Council in
consequence passed the following resolution:—
"That the Medical Officer of Health be authorised to have all the children
and young persons whose parents raise no objection, attending the
Board Schools in the Borough examined by a medical man, as to
whether they have been vaccinated or otherwise, and to prepare and
present a report to the Borough Council as to the result of his examination,
and that the consent of the Council be obtained thereto."
In the appendix to this annual report will be found my report on
the examination of the children. In that report I divided the children
into those vaccinated and those unvaccinalted. Here I wish to make
some further remarks upon the number 9249 found vaccinated. The
following table which I have prepared further classifies the children
into those with only one, two, three, four or five and more vaccination
marks. It will be seen that there were 9.7% of the total with only
one mark; 17.5% with two marks; 24.4% with three marks; 40.9%
with four marks; and 7.3% with five marks and upwards.