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41
Of the 41 cases notified after death 13 (9 pulmonary, 4 nonpulmonary)
were notified by private doctors, 14 (4 pulmonary,
10 non-pulmonary) by Poor Law Institutions and 14 (2 pulmonary,
12 non-pulmonary) by hospitals or asylums.
DISPENSARY TREATMENT OF TUBERCULOSIS.
Battersea Tuberculosis Dispensary.
The Battersea Tuberculosis Dispensary, previously under the
control of a voluntary organization, was taken over by the Borough
Council on the 1st May, 1921. The result of the change-over has
been very satisfactory as it has brought this most important
element of the Borough's Tuberculosis Scheme into close coordination
with the Health Department of the Council.
The work carried on at the Dispensary during 1922 has been
of an extensive and useful character.
The Tuberculosis Officer (Dr. G. Macdonald) reports as follows:—
I beg to submit a report of the work carried out at the
Battersea Tuberculosis Dispensary during the year 1922. During
the year the staff has remained as it was in 1921. The work is
carried on in close co-operation with the general practitioners in
the Borough, and with St. Thomas's Hospital—the affiliated
Hospital. During the year the lack of proper housing accommodation
has militated against the work of prevention. In many cases
the housing accommodation has been manifestly inadequate and in
those cases it has been impossible to isolate sufficiently the tuberculous
patient from the other members of the family. Wherever
possible such patients have been removed to institutions but owing
to the fact that the stay in institutions is only for a limited period,
it will be seen that this removal to institution is only of temporary
assistance as far as the prevention of the disease is concerned.
The question of the employment of the Tuberculous patient especially
after his return from a period of institutional treatment
has been this year, as in previous years, the most difficult problem
to face. Nothing has been done to attempt to solve it and so
long as patients return from Sanatorium with no prospect of
employment, and with the probability that the home conditions
and financial circumstances of the patient are even worse than
before he went away, so long will the end results of Sanatorium
treatment prove disappointing.
There is, unfortunately, a considerable waiting period for
patients between the recommendation for, and admission to,
institutions under the London County Council's Scheme. This
averages roughly 28 days over the whole year. It is true that
ex-service men and acute cases marked as urgent are not usually
kept waiting for so long a period as this, but it follows that the
others must necessarily be delayed for a longer time. This long
waiting time is a distinct disadvantage in many ways. During