SCHOOL HEALTH SERVICE
59. The Medical and Health Department provides an advisory service to the Education Department on matters relating to environ- mental health and hygiene in schools. Inspection of schools is carried oul by School Health Inspectors with special regard to lighting, ventila- tion and sanitary arrangements, and immunization against diphtheria, cholera and smallpox was carried out in the schools during the year by staff under the direction of Area Health Officers. The Government Chest Service is responsible for B.C.G. vaccination in schools.
SCHOOL MEDICAL SERVICES BOARD
(See table 34)
60. The School Medical Service is administered by the School Medical Service Board, an independent statutory body incorporated by Ordinance and operated by private medical practitioners. Remuneration of the doctors is on a per capita basis, half the annual fee being paid by the participating pupil and half contributed by Government which also meets the Board's administrative expenses.
61. On 31st March, 1969 the number of pupils participating was 41,037 from 645 schools, compared with 46,744 pupils from 637 schools on the same date in the previous year. Doctors participating in the scheme numbered 201 compared with 218 in the previous year.
DENTAL SERVICE
(See table 35)
62. The Dental Service provides dental care for Government Officers and their dependants, Government pensioners limited specialized treatment for in-patients of Government Hospitals and for prisoners, and emergency treatment for members of the general public.
63. Fluoridation of the Colony's urban water supplies began in 1961. The rate of enrichment was formerly at two levels, being 0.7 parts of fluoride per million in summer and 0.9 parts per million during winter. In May 1967 the concentration was increased to a constant level of 1 part per million throughout the year. This level is to be maintained in future and is the result of a decision arrived at after consideration of more recent work on the study of optimum fluoride levels for com- munity water supplies. The cost of this operation is now estimated at about nine cents per person receiving fluoridated water per annum.
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Dental health education plays an important part in combating dental disease in the Colony and the Dental Service continued to take advantage of major educational exhibitions to distribute information and advice on the maintenance of dental health.
64. Although no training in dentistry is undertaken in Hong Kong, a programme of overseas training is maintained by Government and during the year two scholarships were awarded to students for study in the University of Sydney in Australia. In-service training in dental technology is available for students in Government employment and evening classes are held in the Hong Kong Technical College for technicians in private employment. One dental surgery assistant was under training for dental nursing in Penang, Malaysia, under a World Health Organization Fellowship.
FORENSIC PATHOLOGY
(See table 36)
65. The Forensic Pathology Service consists of a main laboratory in Polies Headquarters, Hong Kong, and another laboratory in the Mong Kok Police Station, Kowloon. It dealt mainly with medico-legal work in close association with the Royal Hong Kong Police Force. Although the administration of the public mortuaries at Victoria and Kowloon is in the hands of the Government Institute of Pathology, homicidal deaths and deaths from suspicious circumstances still remain in the hands of the Forensic Pathologists.
GOVERNMENT LABORATORY
(See table 40}
66. The laboratory was kept very busy throughout the year and some 31,012 items (seizures, exhibits, specimens and samples) were received for examination. This is a record total for any one year since the laboratory's inception.
67. The Forensic Division was again the busiest and towards the end of this year more than two-thirds of the staff were engaged in this aspect of the work. Changes in the law on dangerous drugs placed a considerable strain on resources. The examination of a large number of questioned documents was a feature of forensic work and during the year officers of the Division were called out on many occasions to scenes of crime.
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