London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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East Barnet 1910

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for East Barnet]

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11
accompanied by the appalling death roll of 60,000 per
annum. It has recently been estimated that nearly 60
per cent of the milch cows of our country are suffering
more or less with tuberculosis.
I am of opinion that the time has now arrived when,
in the interests of the public health, all cows supplying
milk for public consumption should be compulsorily
subjected to the " Tuberculin " test, and only the animals
satisfactorily passing the test should be retained; also
that Sanitary Authorities should be in a position to
demand from all purveyors of milk within the district
the source of the milk they supply. So far as can be
ascertained no effort is at present made by the cowkeepers
of the District to determine whether tuberculosis
in any form exists among the herds, and until this is
done, voluntarily or compulsorily, the freedom of the
milk supply from infection is necessarily a question of
uncertainty.
Disinfection.—Rooms are disinfected by
spraying with a solution of formalin. Bedding, wearing
apparel, &c., are disinfected by steam at the Isolation
Hospital. The disinfector—a Washington Lyons—is
unfortunately rather small, a so-called 3 ft. 6 in.
size, but the cage that actually holds the articles to be
disinfected is only 2ft. 4 in. in width, consequently
large and bulky articles, like large mattresses, and feather