Health Officer's annual report / the Municipality of George Town, Penang, Straits Settlements.

  • George Town (Pinang). Municipal Health Office.
Date:
[1932]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Health Officer's annual report / the Municipality of George Town, Penang, Straits Settlements. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    spread useful mst,as to the proper rare and management of mother and child, hut Seel tH, 1,1 tl,e hest ltelests people, and of eveu (.renter importance than the Nurses work, that more intensive methods ..Id he adopted in the instruction of school Mi?Is in the elementary principles of motliereratT. Karly in tlie year Messrs. A no],,-Siam Corporation Ltd., kindly presented five cases or “Glaxo” for use in special cases, and a further case in each of the last two months. They also presented one case of “Woodward’s Gripe Water” and one cross packets of safety pins. I have to acknowledge also a present from the Georoe Town Dispensary Ltd., of four dozen tins of “Cow and (fate” milk. AH these gifts proved most useful, and were much appreciated, as our Nurses visit plenty of families who are in great financial difficulty. 11. VACCINATION. Public vaccination within Municipal limits is performed chiefly by our staff. Our system of infant vaccination is the same as in recent years. When a birth is reported, a Sub-Inspector proceeds to verify the address if possible, and gives advice as to vaccination and how to get free vaccination if desired, at the same time giving the formal vaccination notice.as required by law. After six months if the vaccination, or the removal from the town, or the death of the child has not been reported, the house is revisited and the parents reminded, both verbally and by a formal notice, that vaccination is overdue. Most of the vaccination is done on house to house visitation, by three of our Sub- Inspectors and the results are satisfactory: this method though it costs us a heavy expen¬ diture in Inspector's time, seems the best practicable and worth continuing. 5,120 births were reported during the year. Our staff did 3,838 vaccinations of which 3,59b were primary and 23b secondary. In addition Government vaccinators performed during the year 6,403 secondary vaccinations mostly in schools and private practitioners performed 1,013 primary vaccinations. 688 infants died under the age of one year of whom 628 were unvaccinated. No serious results have been reported here from vaccination. 12. ANTI -MOSQUITO WORKS. At the beginning of the year our Indian labour force consisted of 64 coolies and 60 boys or “chokras”. The men were divided into four gangs, one of their number being appointed head man in each to supervise the others and not to do manual labour himself. In addition there were two gangs of oilers with eight and ten men in each, each gang working under a supervisor The working gangs were employed chiefly on making ditches, clearing and training streams and stagnant ditches, filling in pools and hollows, and cutting undergrowth, much of the work being done on so-called “reserve roads”. The hoys, divided in five gangs of twelve hoys, each gang working under supervisor, were most useful in collecting and where possible burying coconut shells, tins and other receptacles likely to he mosquito breeding places, t hey also do some minor oiling work.