Report of the Director of Medical and Sanitary Services / [Ceylon].

  • Ceylon. Civil Medical Department.
Date:
[1930]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Director of Medical and Sanitary Services / [Ceylon]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    50/80 (page 48)
    The Infections Diseases Hospital (Angoda), Colombo.—T>uring the year under review, there was no outbreak of cholera or plague, but an outbreak of smallpox occurred in the Lunatic Asylum, Angoda, among the patients and staff and 4 cases of imported smallpox were admitted. Chickenpox is endemic in Ceylon and cases occurred throughout the year but not in an epidemic form. Mumps was more prevalent than measles and an outbreak of enteric fever occurred after the great Hood in May, 1930. There remained 43 patients in hospital at the end of 1929 and 1,449 patients were admitted during the year making the total treated 1,492, as against 1,982 during the previous year. Of these 134 cases proved fatal, giving a mortality of 5.95 per cent., as against 5.04 per cent, during the previous year. The following are some of the infectious diseases treated and the number of deaths in 1930: — Smallpox Enteric fever Measles Whooping cough Diphtheria Mumps Plague Chickenpox Number treated. 21 303 43 14 16 99 12 668 Deaths. 2 81 1 5 11 2 Sixty-six plague contacts and 67 smallpox contacts -were kept under observation while 15 smallpox contacts were segregated. Report on Outstation Hospitals. Of the provincial hospitals those of Kandy and Galle are the largest and most important. Kandy Hospital.—There are 333 beds and the medical staff consists of a Super¬ intendent, Physician, Surgeon, Ophthalmic Surgeon, and 4 House Officers. The hospital is a nurses' training school and 83 pupils were under training during the year. Both the wards and nurses’ quarters were much overcrowded. There wrere 9,314 admissions in 1930, as compared with 10,654 in 1929. Of these 8,620 were cured and discharged, 694 died; the corresponding figures for 1929 were 9,945 and 709 respectively. The daily average sick in hospital was 392.45, as against 448.61 in 1929; the percentage of deaths to total treated was 7.12, as against 6.79 in 1929. The following table gives the principal diseases treated and the number of deaths:— Enteric fever Admission. Deaths 56 20 Malaria 1,260 9 Dysentery 117 23 Parangi 27 , Diphtheria 9 _ Leprosy 23 1 Ankylostomiasis 608 99 Pneumonia 150 60 Operations.—There were 435 operations performed, 236 major and 199 minor with 21 and no deaths respectively. The Eye Institute is becoming a popular institution and the Eve Surgeon is kept fully occupied till 2 or 3 p.m. every day. Two wards are allotted for eye cases and are always overcrowded. The number of eye operations performed was 714. Galle Hospital—This hospital is situated in Mahamodara, a suburb of Galle, and is near the sea. It has at present accommodation for 250 patients. I he staff consists of a Medical Superintendent, Visiting Physician, Visiting Surgeon, Eye Surgeon, and 3 House Officers. rI his hospital js also a training centre for nurses with a European Matron and two Nursing Sisters. The total number of in-patients treated during the year was 7,770 with a daily average of 215.85. Out of these 466 died giving a percentage of 5.98 deaths.