[Report 1902] / Medical Officer of Health, Nelson Borough.

  • Nelson (England). Borough Council.
Date:
1902
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1902] / Medical Officer of Health, Nelson Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    Under the “ Notification of Infectious Diseases Act” there have been reported 269 cases of Scarlet Fever, 26 Enteric Fever, 28 Diphtheria, i Membranous Croup, 26 Erysipelas and 130 Small Pox. In the Enteric cases closed buckets with disinfectants for the reception of the excreta were supplied and regularly removed to the Refuse Destructor. I think you will agree with me that the year 1902 has been an eventful one, but not of the most pleasant character. We have not only had epidemics of Scarlet Fever and Measles, but a very severe visitation of that loathsome disease Small Pox, so severe, that from the 19th February to the 28th May, 77 cases were reported. The accommodation at our temporary Small Pox Hospital was soon inadequate, but the Committee rose to the occasion and with all dispatch had two corrugated-iron Hospitals ready for use. The only real safeguards— vaccination and re-vaccination—were offered to and accepted by great numbers, and soon there was a marked diminution in the number of fresh cases, in fact, by the middle of July, we hoped the epidemic was over, having no fresh case from the 28th May. These hopes were soon dispelled, for on the 19th August three cases were reported from one house, on the nth September (23 days after) another case was reported from a different part of the town, another on the i6th and one on the i8th. We then found that a concealed case in a barber’s shop had been propagating the contagion. I have already reported this fully to you, and also sent two special reports to the Local Government Board and to the County Medical Officer of Health. From the 19th August to the 14th Nov¬ ember we had 52 cases, then a lull of six weeks, then on the 28th December another case was reported, making 53 cases in the second outbreak. We had 130 cases during the year, 77 in the first outbreak and 53 in the second. You have already had a tabulated statement of the 77, giving the vaccinated and unvaccinated. Of the 53 in the second outbreak, 28 were adults and had been vaccinated in infancy, (none re-vaccinated). The disease, with one or two exceptions was