12
By the end of the year, the following centres were functioning :—–
A. HONG KONG.
Queen's Road, Outpatient Department, Sai Ying Pun,
(1)
(2)
Harcourt Health Centre, Happy Valley,
(3)
Former Maijima Hospital, Wanchai,
(4)
Public Dispensary. Shaukiwan.
Ashley Road,
B. KowloON.
(1)
(2) Tsim Sha Tsui.
In addition to tea beds for female patients in the Wanchai Centre, some twenty-eight beds were reserved for both sexes in the Queen Mary Hospital.
By Proclamation No. 28 of the 21st of March, 1946, powers were given for the compulsory treatment of venereal disease of certain classes of patients. The intention of this legislation was to provide means of examining and treating persons believed to have caused the spread of venereal disase to others.
Information regarding such persous was given by members of the Royal Navy, Army, Air Force and the U.S. Navy. Health visitors subacquently got into touch with such girls and persuaded them to attend for treatment.
At the same time, the health visitors encouraged any other girls practising prostitution to attend the clinics for examination and, if necessary, for treatment.
cholern.
Wanchai was put out of bounds for troops in June owing to the prevalence of The effect was to scatter the prostitutes who lived in the area further afield.
In the last few months of the year, at the request of the Military Authorities, the Police raided places used as brothels. This made it difficult for health visitors to contact the women and to encourage them to attend.
Queen's Road
Harcourt
The following table summarises the attendances and diagnones:---
Social Hygiene Centre:
New cases+
Attendances
Male:
Famale:
Minie:
female:
(a)
Hong Kong,
1,638
1,847
2,026
11,144 8.382 12,106
Maijima
1,785
Shaukiwan
KADER
183
18,321 826
Hong Kong Total:
******** 3,664
3,316
23,249 28,129
(b)
Kowloon.
Ashley Road g
1,046
94
Teim Sha Tsul' . ......4 ・・・
1,893+
3.249
Kowloon Total:
3,839
2,343
10,999 531 15,737 19,684
26.736 29,215
HONG HONG Total
3,064
3,316
KOWLOON Total
3.539
2.349
22.249 28.120 26.736 29,215
GRAND TOTAL..
7,203
6.668
49,985
67,344
Diagnoses:——
C
Gonorrhoes 2,370; syphilis 6,069;
syphilis and gonorrhoea 1,445;
chanchroid 510; lymphadenoma inguinale 104; non-venereal 900; skin infection 877;
observation 139: not diagnosed 447.
-Closed for female patients on 16th April, 1946. 忄 Closed for mak patients on 19th November, 1946.
I
13
Apart from the 12,861 new cases dealt with at the clinics, a very large number of visits to premises were made by the supervisor of health visitors and her staff of health visitors. Kindly advice was given to those believed to be engaged in prosti- tution, aiming at the protection of the giris and of their contacts.
In several instances, the health visitors were able to help a girl to obtain work of a satisfactory nature which should enable her to leave her former life behind her. Attempted blackmail by pimps occasionally interferred with these endeavours;
(V) Food in relation to health and diseaIE.
The rice staple on which the bulk of the population subsists, was reduced on two occasions during 1946, efforts being made to supplement carbohydrate needs by introducing flour.
In January, the daily ration was 8 tacls" rice, In July, 6.4 taols rice and 2.4 taels flour; in December, 4 taels rice, 3.2 tacls flour and 1.6 taels blue peas, the prices being as follows:-
January, 1946.
December, 1946.
Juiz. 1946.
Rice Flour
20 cts. per cattys
25 cta. per catty 20 cts.
**
Blue peas
25 cta. per catty 40 cts. 60 cta. IP
**
ทา
No price control was placed on sales of rice from the Leased Territories and of "black market” rice imported by manipulators. It was estimated that rather over one third of the rice consumed in Hong Kong was bought at 'black market' rates.
At times, the quality of the Government-control rice was of a very low standard. resembling broken sweepings, but a decided improvement took place towards the latter end of the year.
Apart from rice, Government provided 1.6 taels of blue peas and 3-2 taels of flour at a controlled price as a daily ration.
The Government instituted a price-control system involving a very large range of articles of food (and other commodities) which brought considerable relief to a community hard-hit by the high cost of living.
Representatives of the Hong Kong Government visited Singapore several times in the course of the year and reported to Lord Killearn's Conferences the food situation in the Colony and made the necessary representations with a view to securing an adequate allotment of the rice crops available for Far Eastern countries.
In order to place a check on issues to non-residents of Hong Kong, the Government withhold rice ration cards from arrivals in Hong Kong after March, 1946, unless they could furnish proof of seven years residence before 1941 in the Colony or that they were Hong Kong born.
Despite the reduction in the rice ration from the previous quantity of 10 taels to 4 taels the relative rarity of cases of frank starvation, under-nourishment or marked avitaminosis was a remarkable feature of 1948,
Not only did careful surveys carried out by the medical officers attached to the government hospitals and school medical service fail to provide evidence of any serious degree of malnutrition, but statistics available from the public mortuaries were equally satisfactory. For example, out of a total of 1,682 bodies upon whom autopsies were performed at the two mortuaries, only two showed signs of death having been due to starvation.
The Nutrition Research Committee was resuscitated with wider membership as the Hong Kong Nutrition Advisory Council in 1946. Feuding the appointment of a nutrition medical officer who was engaged in nutrition research in London under the Colonial Nutrition Research Committee, Dr. Eggleton, Ph.D., F.1.C., biochemist, acted as the secretary of the Council.
The biochemist examined 1,123 specimens. mostly from the Queen Mary Hospital. He, also, assisted in carrying out surveys of dietary scales in the govern- ment hospitals, prison, orphanages, and relief centres, and advised on food supplements for school children.
• 1 cater 1 lbs. approximately.
* 1 tacl
1
ounces