[Report 1972] / Medical Officer of Health, Chester City & County Borough.

  • Chester (England). City & County Borough Council.
Date:
1972
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1972] / Medical Officer of Health, Chester City & County Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    17/62 (page 13)
    NOTIFIABLE INFECTIOUS DISEASES Scarlet Fever was less prevalent—14 cases notified. There was no Whooping Cough notified but Measles rose from 41 in 1971 to 123. Diphtheria and Poliomyelitis were absent. Food Poisoning numbered 12 without any serious outbreak. One case of Infective Jaundice was notified Control of Notifiable Diseases On receipt of notification from the General Medical Practitioner, the staff of Health Visitors make immediate investigation and report to the Medical Officer of Health. Help from other sections of the Health Depart- ment may be necessary, especially in cases of Food Poisoning. The Medical Officer of Health and Deputy have been given authority to issue notices in emergency to stop the spread of Infectious Diseases. School closure is now only very rarely considered a good step to control the spread FOOD POISONING There are, for public health purposes, three types of poisoning:— (a) Poisoning by chemical agents in food, e g. lead poisoning from beer. (b) Poisoning by bacterial toxins (exotoxins). No living organisms may be present, yet heat-stable toxins can give illness. (c) Poisoning by bacteria themselves (endotoxins). This includes the Salmonella Groups. It will be seen then that bacteriological examination may be negative and yet the food can poison. Normally group (c) is the most common and usually caused by Salmonella organisms. Immediate notification of Food Poisoning is of the utmost importance —preferably by telephone, so that portions of uneaten food might be obtained, and specimens from the patient examined before the organism is ‘washed out’ of the intestinal tract by diarrhoea. Twelve cases were notified during the year. Under the PUBLIC HEALTH ACT, 1961, compensation is payable by the Local Health Authority to contacts and cases of Notifiable Infectious Disease who are recommended by the Medical Officer of Health to cease their work temporarily on this account. The total amount thus paid during the financial year was £20.45.