Report of the Principal Civil Medical Officer and Inspector-General of Hospitals / [Ceylon].

  • Ceylon. Civil Medical Department.
Date:
[1905]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Principal Civil Medical Officer and Inspector-General of Hospitals / [Ceylon]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    11/72 (page 11)
    (2) The Victoria Home for Incurables, Colombo.—At this institution 50 cases remained at the end of the last year, which with the 21 cases admitted during the year made a total of 71. Of these, 10 died and 4 were discharged ; 57 patients remained at the end of the year. 57. Bacteriological Institute.—The total number of specimens examined bacteriologically during the year was 1,753, and the amount recovered by fees was Rs. 406. Special investigations were made in leukemia, hsematozoa, trypanosomes, filaria, diphtheria, acute contagious ophthalmia, parangi, and tropical skin diseases. The water supply of Colombo is examined bacteriologically once in three months. 58. Total deaths.—The total deaths numbered 6,697 against 4,801 in 1904, showing an increase of 1,896. A table showing the death-rate per cent, in the various hospitals and asylums in the Island for the year as compared with the last year is annexed. For the purpose of comparison the death-rate among the mixed races and Malabars have been shown separately :— Mixed Races. Malabax s. Total. Hospitals. 1904. 1905. 1904. 1905. 1904. 1905. Civil . . 5-81 .. 7 • 12 .. 12-93 .. 14-89 .. 7-28 8-72 Field .. 314 .. 412 .. 9-37 .. 11-7 . . 3-54 4 ‘87 Immigrant 3-75 .. 5-36 .. 9- 7 .. 1017 .. 4-96 6-39 District 4-65 .. 4-69 .. 17-62 .. 19-98 .. 12-35 .. 14-36 Asylums 7-90 .. 9-73 .. 9-09 .. 8-84 .. 8-06 9- 6 Total 5-67 6- 6 15-18 17-34 8-01 9-92 The percentage of deaths to cases treated in the Civil Hospitals showed a slight increase among the mixed races and the Malabars. In the Immigrant Hospitals the increase among the mixed races and the Malabars was slight. In the District Hospitals there was a slight increase among the mixed races and among the Malabars. Taking all the hospitals and asylums together, there was a slight increase in deaths among the mixed races and among the Malabars. The percentage of deaths to total treated was 9-92, against 8’01 in 1904. 59. Hospital accommodation.—This was generally sufficient; occasionally some overcrowding took place, especially at Buttala, Neboda, Dikoya, and at the Lunatic and Leper Asylums, for the extension .of which steps have been taken to increase the accommodation at most of these institutions. 60. The water supply.—With the exception of the following institutions : Matale, Mannar, Galle, Chilaw, Nikaweratiya, Balangoda, Trincomalee—was reported to be good, pure, wholesome, and abundant. Water for drinking purposes is, as a rule, filtered before use. Water supply schemes for Nanu-oya, Balangoda, Tillicoultry, and Bandarawela are under consideration. 61. Bathrooms.—All hospitals are provided with separate bathrooms for males and females and furnished with tubs, which are filled with hot or cold water according to the requirements of the patients. Patients who can help themselves, however, prefer to bathe in streams, where there are such adjoining a hospital. 62. Drains.—There are no covered drains. The drains are all surface ones for carrying away ward washings and storm water. 63. Sewage.—The conservancy of the latrines is entirely on the dry-earth system ; the excreta is removed daily and buried or incinerated at some distance from the hospitals. Doulton’s earthenware squatting plates have been introduced into most of the hospitals. 64. Inspection.—The hospitals were all inspected either by me or the Colonial Surgeons of the res¬ pective Provinces. The number of these visits of inspection and the official designation of the visitors will be found given in the return of each institution. The books were produced when called for, and were generally found complete and made up to the date of examination. The reports of inspection by the Colonial Surgeons as well as those by me were forwarded to Government when necessary. 65. Food supply.—The provisions for the various hospitals were supplied by purveyors on contract approved by Government. The system works satisfactorily. The Medical Officers in charge of the respective hospitals examine the food before it is served out to the patients, and reject such articles as do not come up to contract samples; contractors offering inferior articles are fined. 66. Dispensaries.—Five hundred and four dispensaries, including branch institutions and visiting stations, were in operation. Of these, 316 were Civil, 46 District, and 142 Estate. They are dis¬ tributed as follows:—In the Western Province 34, Central 63, Northern 46, Southern 41, Eastern 41, North-Western 38, North-Central 37, Province of Uva 31, and Province of Sabaragamuwa 31, and on Estates 142. In the Civil and District Dispensaries there were treated 1,222,790 persons who paid 1,849,544 visits, against 948,386 persons who paid 1,454,367 visits in 1904. 67. Port duties and immigration.—The number of vessels which arrived at the port of Colombo was 3,250 against 3,218 in 1904, 2,800 being steamers and 450 native craft. Six vessels were in strict quarantine for smallpox, two for cholera, eleven for suspected plague, and a British transport which arrived in November with three cases of scarlet fever. The sick in all cases were isolated and the contacts segregated. A new disinfecting station has been established at the root of the Breakwater, where an Equifex high pressure steam disinfecting machine has been erected. There are washing-rooms for clerks and for first and second class saloon passengers. The number of persons disinfected at the old station, Kochchikade, during the year was 70,949. The number of native passengers who arrived in Colombo during 1905 was 80,321 traders and 138,371 estate coolies ; out of these totals, 16,394 who had no marks of vaccination were vaccinated. Pearl Fishery. 68. Medical staff.—'The fishing lasted from 20th February until the 21st April, but the Medical Officers were at their posts on the 9th of February. Dr. F. G. Spittel was the chief Medical Officer at the Fishery Camp, assisted by one Medical Officer and four apothecaries. There were two Medical Officers at Paumben, who inspected all passengers embarking for the camp, for infectious disease.