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INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
Sickness benefit, contacts or carriers of infectious disease.
Under the National Insurance Act, 1946, sickness benefit will,
in certain circumstances, be payable to persons who are deemed to
be incapable of work through being contacts or carriers, although
not actually ill themselves. Only exceptionally is it necessary
to require contacts or carriers of infectious disease to stay away
from work, and then only in the case of more serious infections.
The Medical Officer of Health may issue a certificate where
there is a special risk saying such a person should absent himself
from his employment for a time; and it is in such circumstances
that the right to draw sickness benefit is occasioned.
Benefit will only be paid on the production of a certificate
by a Medical Officer of Health that the person is under medical
observation by reason of being a carrier of infectious disease, or
has been in contact with a case of infectious disease (as the case
may be) in circumstances which make it advisable to exclude him
from work.
This Act applies particularly to food handlers, e.g. persons
employed in cafes, canteens and restaurants.
During the year two such certificates were issued.
DIPHTHERIA
The Borough has now been free from cases of diphtheria since
1946, and if parents will continue to take advantage of the
immunisation service offered, there is no reason why the disease
should not be entirely stamped out. The responsibility for
providing this service rests with the County Council by virtue of
section 26 of the National Health Service Act, 1946, and the
Medical Officer of Health, who is also the Divisional Medical
Officer for the County Council, organises the service within the
Borough.
Administrative work on immunisation is conducted in the
Public Health Department on behalf of the County Council for which
35% of a clerk's salary is reimbursed.
Arrangements also exist with general medical practitioners to
carry out diphtheria and whooping cough immunisation. A doctor
taking part is expected to send records to the Authority of the
immunisation carried out in the course of his practice; the
Authority provides the record cards and pays a fee to the doctor
for each completed card received.
Doctors are able to collect prophylactic material from the
Public Health Department or from the Central Public Health
Laboratory at Colindale.
Diphtheria Immunisation Clinics are held at:-
Gosbury Hill Clinic, Friday mornings at
1, Gosbury Hill, Hook. 11 o'clock.
Telephone. Elmbridge 5737.
South Place Clinic, Monday mornings at
Ewell Road, Surbiton. 11 o'clock.
Telephone; Elmbridge 4897.
(or Diphtheria Immunisation may be carried out by patient's own
doctor, as described above).
13.