View report page

57
of persons of limited income, who do not care to call in
the Public Vaccinator, the expense of being re-vaccinated
by their private practitioner is a deterrent to the operation
being done, unless the danger is very imminent; besides,
during epidemic times, the number of persons requiring
re-vaccination can be more promply dealt with, than under
the present system.
Another point which needs consideration is that relating
to the supply of lymph. I have been asked by several
medical practitioners, if I could recommend them a good
lymph, as certain of the varieties of lymph in the market
have failed to "take" when used for vaccination. At one
public establishment, where all the inmates were revaccinated
with a certain quality of lymph, not one of the
cases re-acted; and generally a certain amount of dissatisfaction
has been expressed, as to the quality of lymph
from private sources.
Vaccination being a national concern, all lymph should
be prepared under the supervision of Government Officers.
No lymph, except that which has been supervised during
its preparation by such officers, should be allowed under
penalties to be used in this country. This would ensure
all lymph being of an uniform standard.
Again, I have had applications made to me during the
present outbreak of small-pox in London, by certain factory
proprietors in the Borough, to send the Public Vaccinator
to their establishments to re-vaccinate certain of their
employes, who wished the operation done. In practice
it is found that the Public Vaccinator cannot do all these
re-vaccinations, because many of the persons live out of the
district to which the Public Vaccinator has been appointed.
Some arrangement should be made to meet such cases;
it is obviously of advantage that such cases should be dealt