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The following table provides detalis of the work done at the dispensaries.
Chimete Publie
Dispensary.
Eastern
Central
Western
Impalenta. (maternity) 002
Outpatiesin,
Birth Replatered.
Vaccinations,
Inoculations.
13.716
4,781
10,061
1,081
26.785
10,148
1,340
27,063
1,478
6,123
842
14,688
520
3,956
398
44,004
826
6,356
034
47,661
4.407
8,119
617
69,401
8,270
27.316
4,198
263,318
16,277
72,061
9.410
Aberdeen
Shaukiwan
Yeumati
Shamshuipo
Totals:... 902
In addition to the above, a village dispensary and maternity home was re- established during the year at Stanley Village and was responsible for caring for 4.818 outpatients and seventy-two deliveries amongst the fisher-women.
Government dispensaries combined with maternity homes were reopened in 1946 at several points in the Leased Territories. The work at these centres was further augmented towards the end of the year by two travelling dispensarles which carried the benefits of Western medicine to many outlying villages. The work of these fixed and mobile dispensaries in the Lessed Territories was coordinated by an officer combining the functions of a medical officer and a medical officer of health. Apart from popularising scientific methods of treatment, these centres afforded an opportunity for the medical officer to stimulate an interest in preventive medicine.
In close cooperation with the administrative officers of the district, sanitary committeça were inaugurated at Un Long, Saikung, Shek Wu Hui and Cheung Chau.
The village Elders elected to these bodies were encouraged to take an active interest in the hygienic disposal of refuse and nightsoil, the general cleanliness of the streeta, open spaces, markets, and so on. This form of "local government" serves a secondary purpose in educating the community, in an elementary way, in civic responsibility so that, in due course, integration with a municipal government may be facilitated.
The table below scrves to indicate the volume of work carried out at the medical centres in the Leased Territories :—
Centre:
Cheung Chau
Fanling
Shataukok
General
Barók frugled.
9,583
Inpatients.
490
Deltharles.
92
4.702
78
6,317
Sai Kung
8,229
22
San Hui
3.061
41
Sham Tseng
6,401
26
Tai O
20,554
91
Ταίμα
17,810
126
Un Long
23,761
180
Totale:
95,438
688
490
The hospital at Cheung Chau which functioned originally as a unit of the St. John Ambulance Association and Brigade, was financed by Government for the whole period under review, This is in accordance with the policy of the Association to concentrate upon training of personnel and the maintenance of stretcher bearer and nursing squads to meet emergencies like explosions, typhoons, etc., rather than to operate clinics with partly qualified staff.
VIII.
PHARMACEUTICS.
The volume of the work undertaken in the supply and distribution of medical stores increased steadily throughout the year. In 1941, forty institutions were supplied From the Central Medical Store, then situated in Wanchai. In 1946, the number of institutions served by the General Distributing Dispensary in its temporary home reached the figure of sixty-five.
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The existing accommodation is inadequate and it is planned to move to more commodious buildings in Pokfulam near to the Queen Mary Hospital whenever the necessary alterations can be made to the godown in question and the special phar- maceutical products machinery is installed.
The pharmaceutical and dispensing staff became seriously depleted in the course of the year owing to the resignation of three qualified pharmacists and one trained dispenser. Private pharmacies and commercial houses offer salaries three or more times higher than those earned in government service.
But for the generosity of the Services, the department would have experienced a trying shortage of supplies in 1946 owing to the non-arrival of expected medical stores. It is hoped that the situation will right itself by the summer of 1947.
The number of licences under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance, No. 8 of 1987, rose steadily during the year, affecting "listed sellers" and "wholesale dealers”. The registrar's liat now contains 295 names, comprising 116 Wholesale Dealery, 144 Sellers, twenty-five Pharmacists and ten "Registered Premises". The chief pharma- cist visited 230 premises.
One street hawker was prosecuted for offering for sale 820 tablets of sulpha- diazine and a second was warned for exposing for sale. 800 tablets of sulphathiazole. In both cases the tablets were confiscated.
IX. LEASED TERRITORIES.
The importance of the Lensed Territories to the urban community of Hong Kong was reflected in the appointment in August of a health officer with a good knowledge of colloquial Cantonese.
Efforts were made by the local Administration and health authorities working hand-in-hand to interest the local inhabitants in measures simed at improving the standard of domestic and communal hygiene in the Territories by the formation of local sanitary committees under the chairmanship of the administrative officer of the district and with the leadership of the health officer in technical matters. One such committee at Un Long functioned with some degree of success and a second at Sal- kung, on the eastern side, held out hopes of operating. In the remaining sm townships much spade-work will have to be done before apathy and suspicion are overcome and the community is imbued with the right civic"spirit.
The health officer combined work at the seven dispensaries acatterad through- out the Leased Territories with purely health activities. These included encouraging those desirous of obtaining licences to improve the hygiène of their premises to the required standard, controlling matsheds, markets, and hawkers, devising schemes for the improvement of water supplies, latrines, slaughter houses and village layouts, and taking measures to control dangerous and infectious discasEE.
The Leased Territories are of relatively little importance in relation to rice cultivation, since it is doubtful whether enough rice can be grown to meet the needs of more than a week or ten days rice supply in any year. On the other hand, these territories are of increasing importance in regard to vegetable production, since vegetables constitute a perishable commodity and their close proximity to an over- crowded urban area render it imperative that the standard of hygiene should be such as not to affect adversely that of the town itself.
Dispensaries with a medical officer, nurse, midwife, clerk, vaccinator or health inspector were maintained at Tai O. Taipo and Un Long. Less Important centres with one or more nurse-midwives operated at Sham Tseng, San Hui, Shataukok and Sai Kung.
A hospital, belonging to the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, carried on under Government control at Cheung Chau Island. The average inpatient figure for this hospital during the year amounted to thirty.
The travelling dispensaries reenmmenced their periodical visits to villages away from the main towns and a launch made frequent trips to more remote islands.
There is every reason to hope that the preventive aspect of health work will develop to an increasing extent, the purely curative work serving largely as a means of friendly contact with the more progressive units in the population with a view to a public health advance being made with the backing of representatives of Elders, Kai-fongs and similar groups.
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