Annual medical and sanitary report / Nigeria.

  • Nigeria. Medical Department.
Date:
[1918]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

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

    21/172 (page 23)
    When, however, the time comes for carrying out segregation each province should have its own leper settlement under adequate supervision which would prove of more value than if one or two large so-called -Leper Asylums were established. In this way each province would be responsible for its own lepers and the settlement, being under the care of the Medical Officer, would afford facilities for research m experimental medical treatment to those who wished to take advantage of the facilities which would otherwise be denied some who are desirous of prosecuting such experimental work. Such leper settlements would be far more acceptable to those suffering from the disease when they know that they would continue to live in their owm country and be looked after by people of their own native land. 41. Tuberculosis.— The following figures show the number of cases recorded as treated by Medical Officers but they do not cover those treated by private medical practitioners in Lagos Tuberculosis. 1913. ' 1914. 1915. 1916. 1917. 1918. 159 109 1 168 181 178 140 Amongst the 140 cases treated there were recorded 34 deaths, which gives some idea as to the fatality caused by the disease. * In Lagos 74 certified deaths from Tuberculosis were registered as against 55 in 1917 and. 34 in 1916. The figure for 1918 shows a marked rise due in part to increased incidence of the disease and in part to rise in the number of certified deaths registered. The total certified deaths registered for Lagos in 1918 amount to 931. These are inclusive of 244 certified deaths from Influenza. The normal number of certified deaths for the year, exclusive of those due to Influenza, which constituted an exceptional epidemic unknown in other years, amount to 687. The true percentage of certified deaths from Tuberculosis of all forms is struck from the ratio of the number of certified deaths from Tuberculosis, viz., 74 to the normal number of total certified deaths, viz., 687, and amounts to 10 78% as compared to 9*5^ in 1917. As an issue of the remarks submitted under section 40 “Tuberculosis” of the Annual Sanitary Report for 1917, in which reference was made to the insanitary housing conditions in Lagos which aid the spread of Tuberculosis and the necessity of an improvement scheme, the Director of the Medical and Sanitary Services directed that a conference should be held to discuss the alleged increase of Tuberculosis in Lagos. The Acting Senior Sanitary Officer, Dr. Beringer, conferred with Dr. Dalziel, Medical Officer of Health, and Dr. Sapara, a native Government Medical Officer. I attach to this report a copy of their deliberations entitled:— “The Alleged Increase of Phthisis in Lagos Town.” Wherein in paragraph 12 is a summary of important recommenda¬ tions, I to YI, made by them. As REGARDS THESE RECOMMENDATIONS I — I. Isolation.—The conclusion expressed speaks for itself that it is not practicable.