[Report 1921] / Medical Officer of Health, Leeds City.

  • Leeds City Council
Date:
1921
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1921] / Medical Officer of Health, Leeds City. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    76/130 (page 70)
    is no doubt that this centralization of the work will redound to the benefit not only of the patierds themselves but also of the whole community. Incidently, the change will enable economies to be effected in several directions as well as make for greater efficiency. It will eliminate overlapping and prevent unnecessary duplication of effort. Armley House, which was occupied by male patients at the time of the transfer is now used for the treatment of females only, thus increasing the number of available female beds which for a considerable time has not been sufficient to meet the demand. Gateforth continues to be used for early cases only. Both males and females are admitted, but 15 beds only of the 50 available are reserved for the latter. The intention of the Committee is to develop Gateforth on the lines of a training centre, and to use it for the treatment and training of first-stage cases as well as of second-stage cases in whom the disease has been arrested. Towards this end, the stables, coach-house and other outbuildings have been put into repair and are being equipped with the appliances necessary for the training of men in carpentry, tailoring, bootmaking, etc. At the same time ample facilities for learning gardening and poultry¬ keeping will be provided. The object of this training is not only to restore physical health and vigour by properly graduated exercise but also to educate such men and women as do not wish or by reason of their physical condition are unfitted to return to their former employment. Already the results obtained have been most encouraging, and men who, when first admitted to Gateforth are too weak to put in one hour a day at light work witiiout being exhausted, at the end of their stay are able to put in six or eight hours of fairly hard labour without signs of fatigue. The great lack in the tuberculous scheme in Leeds is an institution for the treatment ana training of children suffering from tuberculosis of both the pulmonary and the non-pulmonary types. At present, as many as possible of the latter are sent to the Marguerite Home, Thorp Arch, and to the Lord Mayor Treloar’s Hospital, Alton, Hampshire, whilst the former are treated at Killing- beck and Armley. But the number of children so dealt with is only a fraction of the number which require institutional treatment, and no attempt whatsoever is made to deal with the pre-tuberculous child. The only really hopeful way of tackling this baffling problem