40 ships were fumigated with sulphur dioxide, 19 with cyanide and 148 were granted exemptions subject to proof of freedom from rats. The fumigation staff also fumigated or disinsected bales of gunny, feathers, etc., before export on request by business firma.
Mosquito Control in Vessels.
74. Mosquito breeding on small craft in the waters of the Colony has been reduced to negligible proportions and Aedes aegypti, which was the predominant species found breeding on junks in 1953, has practically been eliminated. This has been brought about chiefly as a result of measures taken by junk masters themselves on the advice given by the Port Health luspectors during the regular inspection of junks throughout the year.
Out of 11,350 juuks inspected mosquito larvae were found on only 26, de. 0.23% of vessels inspected as against 2.32% in the previous year. The species identified were Culer fatigans on 14 junka, Aedes albopictus on 5, Aedes aegypti on 4, Aedes aegypti and Culex fatigans on 1 and Aedes albopictus and Culex fatigans on 2.
Industrial Hygiene.
75. Towards the end of the year a start was made towards organizing a Factory Health Service by seconding a Medical Officer specifically trained in industrial hygiene to the Labour Department. Draft proposals were prepared and approved for establishing a special service to cover this aspect of public health and exercise a more satisfactory supervision of the health of industrial workers as well as to extend the present supervision of working conditions exercised by the Commissioner of Labour.
Health Education Techniques.
76. Much time and effort has been expended in trying to instruct the general public by various means on both general and specific health problems. Special films have been made, posters
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and pamphlets printed, talks and demonstrations arranged, discussion groups organized, radio plays produced and special broadcasts given during the year. In an attempt to assess the relative merits of the various techniques and approaches, an investigation was made by the Health Officers in connexion with the anti-diphtheria campaign, during which all methods of propaganda were used, to ascertain from parents what had persuaded them to bring their children for immunization. The results of this investigation were somewhat inconclusive in some respects but showed definitely that the method which produced most and immediate results was the use of the loud hailers of a public address system mounted on the mobile inoculation vehicle donated by the Rotary Club. At the other extreme posters were very clearly demonstrated to be quite the most unecon- omical and least productive form of propaganda. Direct advice from friends and doctors rated fairly high and interestingly enough quite a surprising number of persons gave their reason for coming for immunization as "seeing the queue.” The responses ascribed to seeing cinema trailers, reading press articles or hearing broadcast talks were disappointing. It would seem that direct conversation or discussions amongst individuals or small groups is the most effective health educa- tional technique.
CURATIVE SERVICES
77. There are in the Colony 27 hospitals of all kinds ranging in size from small twelve bed units to a large general hospital of 589 beds. Government owns and operates 11 of these and provides substantial financial assistance to 7 others orperated by voluntary organizations. The remaining 9 are entirely independent and receive no financial assistance from Government. The 11 Government hospitals provide 1,856 beds, the assisted hospitals 2,111 beds, and the private hospitals 994, a grand total of 4,961 hospital beds for all purposes or a little more than two beds per thousand of population, assuming that the population has not been under estimated. According to certain British authorities quoted in standard text books on the
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