Dr. Blaxall's report to the local government board on an epidemic of scarlatina in the urban sanitary district of new and old Swindon, and on the sanitary condition of those towns.

  • Blaxall, F. H.
Date:
1879
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Dr. Blaxall's report to the local government board on an epidemic of scarlatina in the urban sanitary district of new and old Swindon, and on the sanitary condition of those towns. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service. The original may be consulted at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service.

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    taken at that time for the improvement or closure of the cottage, it was pro- bable that the present deaths would not have taken place. He further proceeded to read the following extract from the report of the inquest:—“ I)r. Powne “ gave it as his opinion that the cause of death was inflammation of the throat, “ a fact not to be wondered at, he said, looking at the wretched state of the “ house they [the inhabitants] lived in. The door had no fastening, and could “ not be shut to keep out the wind, and the water came through the roof in “ streams. Whilst he (Dr. Powne) was in the bedroom attending to another “ child, then apparently on the point of death, as much as a couple of buckets “ of water came through. The mother said she had complained of this for “ the last six months, but nothing had been done. The jury returned a “ verdict of death from inflammation of the throat, and strongly advised the “ mother to make further representations to her landlord as to the state of “ her house.” Now this was the condition of things described as existing in March last, and again brought under the special notice of the Authority on the 16th October as unremedied: and yet up to the date of my visit, on the 5th November, no action had been taken to render the cottage fit for habitation; and the family, after having buried four children since the beginning of the year, had the prospect of facing another winter in the cottage in the same dilapidated condition. Provision for the Isolation of Infectious Diseases. Reference has been made in the accounts given both of New and Old Swin- don to the existence of an infectious-disease hospital at the command of both Sanitary Authorities. This hospital occupies a high open situation in the urban district of Old Swindon, about half a mile to the west of that town, and three-quarters of a mile to the south-west of New Swindon. It consists of two buildings, one of stone and the other of wood, adjoining each other. The stone building dates back for a considerable number of years, having, it is reported, been provided by the parish for the reception of cases of plague; whereas the wooden building is of recent date, having been erected jointly by the Sanitary Authorities of Old and New Swindon for the accom- modation of cases of small-pox in 1871. From that time the hospital has been supervised by the parish overseer, who pays the caretaker. I could not learn upon whose account such payment is made, and do not understand how, if the building belongs to the Sanitary Authorities apart from the Poor Law Authority, a Poor Law officer comes to be employed in its administration. The plot of land on which the hospital stands is held from the Lord of the Manor; it is about 140 feet by 80 feet in extent, enclosed by boarding, surrounded by arable land, and there is no house in the immediate vicinity. The stone building contains a cellar and six rooms, namely, two rooms on the ground floor (one on either side of the entrance door), two rooms on the first floor, separated by a landing 6 feet wide, and two attics with sloping roof. Of these rooms, two are occupied by the caretaker, and the remaining four are available for the accommodation of patients, each room having a capacity for one bed only. There is no provision for through ventilation, the entrance door and windows all facing south. The wooden building consists of a ground floor only, containing two wards (male and female), nurse’s room, and kitchen. Adopting the standard requirements of 2,000 cubic feet and 140 square feet per bed, the capacity of the male ward is barely sufficient for the accommodation of four beds, while that of the female ward is not nearly enough for three beds. Altogether the hospital may be regarded as affording accommodation for nine beds, i.e., four in the stone and five in the wooden building. There is no internal communi- cation between the two buildings, so that two infectious diseases might be received at the same time and treated separately. Between the male ward and the stone building is a small compartment appropriated to the purpose of an ambulance shed, and serving for a mortuary when required. But for this latter purpose its position in relation to the ward renders it unsuitable. The hospital is well provided with bedsteads and bedding, which are apparently kept clean and dry, and ready for use at short notice if required. B 4 Old Swindon. Infectious diseases hospital.