PUBLIC HEALTH
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orthopaedic and come from both Queen Mary and Kowloon Hospitals.
The Sai Ying Pun Infectious Diseases Hospital, situated in one of the busiest areas in the city of Victoria and accom- modated in premises which are probably the oldest possessed by the department, contains a total of 88 beds, and is responsible for the reception of cases of infectious disease arising on the Island and needing hospitalization. In the absence of any severe epidemic the number of beds is adequate, but the hospital is badly out of date and needs to be rebuilt.
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The two prison hospitals, both comparatively small, are located in the male and female prisons. Particularly in the male prison, a large proportion of the beds is occupied by sufferers from tuberculosis.
The Venereal Diseases Hospital contains only 30 beds, but it is gratifying to note that even this small number is now excessive and many of the cases admitted are suffering from non-venereal skin diseases.
The St. John Hospital on Cheung Chau Island is a comparatively modern institution of just over 100 beds. Belonging to the St. John Ambulance Association it was, before the war, operated by that body, but since the war has been lent to Government. A little over half of the beds are for the general use of the inhabitants of Cheung Chau and neighbouring islands, while the remainder are used for convalescent cases of tuberculosis.
It is not possible in a short account of this kind to give more than a brief sketch of some salient features of the non- Government Hospitals, but they may be divided into several groups:
(i) The Tung Wah Group of four hospitals---Tung Wah, Kwong Wah, Tung Wah Eastern Hospitals and Sandy Bay Convalescent Home. These hospitals which