Report of the Ministry of Health / Colony of Singapore.

  • Singapore. Ministry of Health.
Date:
[1957]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Ministry of Health / Colony of Singapore. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    17/294 (page 5)
    Weekly radio broadcasts were made on Sundays in the latter part of the year, while weekly film shows were held in the rural area. During the year the Department took part in an exhibition on ‘Food and Health’ on World Health Day. The Health Branch also organised a small exhibition entitled ‘Your Health Service' at the Yio Chu Kang Community Centre. School Medical Services 23. The school population and the total enrolment for all schools at the end of the year was 260,444 as compared with 235,079 at the end of 1956. There has been a slow but steady improvement in the environmental hygiene of school premises, particularly in the rural schools. Up to the end of the year 526 of the 570 Government and Government Aided Schools were visited and approximately 30 per cent of the school population were examined. The attendance of children at the school clinics showed a 12 per cent overall increase as compared with the previous year. The part-time B.C.G. team visited the schools regularly. Maternal and Child Health 24. With the appointment of a fully qualified experienced officer to assume charge of this service it was possible to carry out a good deal of re-organisation. During the year three new main clinics and three midwife centres were opened. Every effort is being made to build up the existing domiciliary midwifery service with resident midwives stationed in the areas of population and to provide a full service supervised by a Supervisor of Midwives and the medical staff of the service. 25. A drive was carried out during the year to encourage immunisation against diphtheria. A team visited kampongs monthly and a total of 4,476 children were given the initial dose of P.T.A.P. and of these 3,578 received the final dose. These children were not regular ‘attendances’ at any of the centres and these injections were given in addition to the routine clinic im¬ munisations done during the year which totalled 62,774 injections. 26. A pilot B.C.G. vaccination experiment was carried out for new¬ born babies in the rural areas. The results were very encouraging and B.C.G. vaccination will be extended to all centres in 1958. Social Diseases. 27. The extension to the Maternal and Child Health Services in the rural areas has necessitated the bringing into service of a second Mobile Social Hygiene Dispensary. The two dispensaries now visit 16 instead of the 10 main centres previously. Specimens of blood from ante-natal cases were taken for serological tests, women with vaginal discharges were examined and treatment when necessary was carried out. 28. There was a slight increase in the number of venereal infections referred to the clinics during the past year. It is difficult to explain the increase over last year but it has been suggested that it may be attributable to better case-finding methods and tne greater cover made possible by the provision of the second Mobile Dispensary. Mental Health. 29. Woodbridge Hospital situated on the outskirts of the City is the centre of our Mental Health Service. It has a total of 2,040 beds. At the end of the year there were 2,269 patients in the hospital. During 1957, 1,853 patients were admitted, compared with 1,732 during 1956.