Annual medical and health report / Nigeria.

  • Nigeria. Medical Department.
Date:
[1935]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Annual medical and health report / Nigeria. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    12/96 (page 4)
    towards health propaganda and school medical work proved particularly useful; model sanitary structures were erected throughout the country and these have had a marked effect in stimulating the interest of the people in sanitation. This propaganda work is being maintained by the use of a travelling propaganda unit by which locally produced cinema films are displayed. Statistics show that general hospital work amongst the African population has again increased :— Total cases treated. 1932. 1933. 1934. 1935. Europeans :— In-patients Out-patients Total Europeans Africans and other Non- Europeans :— In-patients Out-patients ... Total Africans 1,010 5,912 1,030 6,058 1,065 6,968 1,002 6,876 6,922 7,088 8,033 7,878 41,577 541,517 45,233 570,607 47,947 594,555 52,126 667,192 583,091 615,840 642,502 719,318 In addition to the above 819,068 patients received treatment at Native Administration dispensaries during 1935 as compared with 628,065 patients in 1934; and 84,000 cases of sleeping sickness were treated by the sleeping sickness survey teams. There are now 266 dispensaries supported by the Native Administrations and the, system is now so well established that the original conception of developing these into local health centres is gradually taking place. Thus, infant vaccination is now carried out at these centres, a female health visitor has been added to the staff at several dispensaries and in some areas child welfare centres have been developed. A series of sleeping sick¬ ness dispensaries, not included in the above, have been opened in districts which have been surveyed and treated by the sleeping sickness teams; these dispensaries are in charge of Mallams who have been trained in the teams and who are equipped with microscopes and apparatus for giving intravenous injections. I.—GENERAL DISEASES. A return of diseases and deaths for 1935 is given in Tables IV and V on pages 41 to 59 of this report. The incidence of disease groups is shown in diagramatic form overleaf. Attention was drawn in the 1934 report to the prevalence of neurasthenia or psychasthenia amongst the Europeans serving in Nigeria. During 1935 the condition was diagnosed in eighty-nine European officials and fifteen European non-officials. It was shown as the cause of invaliding in 27.3 per cent and 16.3 per cent of total invalid- ings of officials and non-officials respectively. Dietetic deficiencies in native diets.—The great importance of this subject is becoming more and more obvious. During the year steady work was carried out at the dietetics laboratory in Zaria and by Dr. A. Clark, working under a grant made by the Medical Research Council and Colonial Medical Fund. Very significant facts emerged upon the toxic element in cassava (gari) and the coco yam. It is now felt that diffusion of the knowledge already gained, especially amongst schools and by the propaganda unit, is of more vital importance than further intensive research and it is proposed that the Medical Officer of Health in charge of the dietetic laboratory shall devote his time for this purpose on his return from leave, if possible in association with Dr. Fitzgerald Moore who has again shown the seriousness of retro-bulbar neuritis in school children due to defective diets.