Squatters continued to be a grave public health responsibility. An increase in enteric fever during the year was closely related to the squatter problem, and efforts were made to establish a degree of sanitary control in these settlements.
General Health
There
The general health in the Colony has remained good. has been no serious nutritional disease. During the summer months there was an increase in the number of cases of typhoid fever which reached a maximum of 129 in July. There was a further increase in the number of births and deaths registered but the ratio of births to deaths remained much the same as last year-3.3 to 1.
Maternity Services
In view of growing public demand the Medical Department's maternity services have been extended. Private maternity homes increased from 102 to 114 during the year and this together with the maternity beds in Government and private hospitals increased the number of beds in the Colony from 733 to 880. Only trained midwives registered with the Midwives Board are permitted to practise, and their number has risen during the year from 803 to 861. All private maternity homes must register with the Medical Department and they are subject to inspection by the Supervisor of Midwives.
The maternal mortality figure for the year was 1.7 which is an improvement on the 1949 figure of 2.12.
Child Health
The infant mortality rate for the year was 99.6 which was 0.2 higher than that for 1949. Facilities for treating sick children are provided at 16 clinics throughout the Colony and the number of children attending increased from 136,526 in 1949 to 190,913 in 1950.
Communicable Diseases
For the fourth year in succession the Colony has been free from any major epidemic. There has, however, been a general increase in morbidity particularly in intestinal diseases. This can almost certainly be ascribed to dense overcrowding and particularly to insanitary congestion in squatter communities.
The chief killing communicable diseases in order of importance
were:
Diseases
1. Tuberculosis
Cases
Chinese Non-Chinese
Total
Deaths
Fatality rate
9.039
28
9,067
3.263
36.0%
2. Enteric fever
893
14
907
160
17.6%
3. Diphtheria
515
9
524
135
25.7%
4. Malaria
403
99
502
89
17.7%
5. Bacillary Dysentery 138
115
253
14
5.5%
6. Amoebiasis
104
73
177
10
5.7%
Pneumonia and enteritis however caused more deaths than tuberculosis and are the leading causes of mortality. These diseases are not notifiable.
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