[Report 1877] / Medical Officer of Health, Combined Rural Sanitary Authorities of the County of Hereford and the Urban Sanitary Authority of the City of Hereford.

  • Herefordshire Combined Rural Sanitary Authorities.
Date:
1877
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1877] / Medical Officer of Health, Combined Rural Sanitary Authorities of the County of Hereford and the Urban Sanitary Authority of the City of Hereford. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    to another of as much importance—THE BEST MEANS TO PREVENT THE SPREAD OF INFECTIOUS DISEASE. During my sojourn with you (now nearly live years), and in my Annual Report for the year 1876, I brought to your notice the Free Schools in this County, where, in most cases, the centres of Infection in the different parishes were situated, and by minute observation and enquiry, this theory I have proved correct. There ought to be some register kept of absent children, even if only for a couple of days—and before such absent child is admitted into the school, strict enquiry ought to be instituted as to the cause of such absentee ; if from illness, a Medical Certificate ought to be produced to the Master before re-admission. In many instances this year, an absent child for a week, after suffering from Scarlet Fever, has returned to the School as if no infection were about them, and made the School- room the means to spread broad cast, this and other Infectious Diseases over the parish. And as a further precaution that information ought to be at once transmitted to me by the School Master if a child is absent for more than a couple of days, to enable me to make enquiry at their home the cause of such absence. Unless something of this sort is adopted in every Public School, we shall never hear the last of Scarlet Fever and Infectious Disease in this County. As regirds parents and others withholding information of Infectious Disease being in their house, it ought to be made compulsory under a heavy penalty to give such notice as soon as ascertained to the Medical Officer of Health, it is so in common lodging houses, and works well. The Medical man, too, attend- ing such cases ought to be placed under the same obligation, and for such information furnished, a fee be paid him by such respective Sanitary Authority, be the patient private, club, or pauper. In some large towns in the North, the Authorities have obtained bye-laws to carry out this scheme for the pre- vention of the spread of Infectious Disease. The results have proved most beneficial, and no doubt many lives have been saved thereby. They have also had erected an Hospital for such