The Straits Settlements medical report.

  • Straits Settlements. Medical Department.
Date:
[1920]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The Straits Settlements medical report. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    37/64 (page 37)
    The remaining samples were from wells on estates, private houses, villages, etc. Six of them showed a water unfit for drinking. The fact that 1,392 wells in use and 15 not in use exist in Malacca Town emphasises the need for a larger water supply. Estates. Two hundred and thirty-eight visits were made to estates and one hundred and ninety-six separate estates were visited. Sanitation on the larger estates is on the whole good. Som of the best lines are to be found on Chinese estates and during the prosperity of the 1st half of the year a good deal was done to improve sanitation, but the present financial stringency has stopped unessential work. Pulo Besar.—Two visits were paid and recommendations made. Police Stations.—Twenty-five visits were made to 23 Police Stations by the Health Officer. Anopheline Surveys.—Surveys have been made round St. John’s Hill in connection with the proposed new bungalows; no anophelines were found. They have been, however, in several places within the town. The appointment of 2 Municipal Mosquito Inspectors has enabled pressure to be brought against owners of infested property in the Town and Fort. Action has been taken in the country in several cases under the Mos¬ quito Ordinance. A great deal of anopheline survey work has been done by the Estate Medical Officers. Cholera.—An outbreak of 21 cases with 14 deaths occurred in February lasting to the 1st week of March. The majority (12) of the cases were Tamils on Garing Estate, one came from Rumbia, Jelutong, near nth mile Alor Gajah Road. The remainder including one European were found in the Town and Fort. No connection could be traced to any outside source except that one case was thought to have come from Muar. It was noticed that the Garing cases showed one type of Coma and most of the Town cases another. The Garing cases were isolated in the Estate Hospital, the others in the Quarantine camp at Mata Kuching. Cercbro-Spinal Meningitis.—One case, a Tamil recently arrived from Port Swettenham, occurred at Devon Estate in December and was isolated. Another case, a Tamil male, non-fatal, occurred at Bukit Asahan a few days later apparently from carrier infection from Bekoh (Johore.) Vaccination.—This has been carried on as usual by the Vaccinators but in addition the Medical Officers of the M. A. M. B. have vaccinated most of the uuvaccinated Tamil children on the estates. The Vaccinators’ figures were, perfect 3,184, modified 106, failures 8, not seen 8,597. Total vaccinations 11,895. Quarantine Station.—The Camp at Mata Kuching was used. It is practically impossible to use Pulo Upeh.