in the isolation of coagulase-positive staphylococci. In another outbreak which involved eleven adults and caused one death, the agent was presumed to be a toxin from puffer fish,
84. There has been continuing and increasing health propaganda designed to encourage hygienic methods of food handling by employees of restaurants and other food premises. A series of locally made colour slides was shown to all food handlers of licensed promises in resettlement estates,
85. The investigation and control of cases of notifiable infectious discases, except tuberculosis and malaria, continued to be one of the major tasks of the Health Staff.
86. A number of nuisances due to mosquitoes and flies continued to occur in certain parts of the urban areas. During an 'Anti-Mosquito Week' which was held in March, 5,000 posters were displayed, handbills were distributed and a film was shown in a number of schools. In addition. lectures were given in over 600 schools and a van equipped with a loud hailer was used for propaganda amongst the general public.
87. During the year fly control teams were organized in some out- lying arcas. These teams took direct action by the destruction of larvac whenever possible, this being considered preferable to attacking the adult insects by the use of insecticide with the risk of the development of resistance. The results were extremely encouraging.
88. Health education work has increased during the year both in scope and volume. A long-term programme covering all important aspects of community and household hygiene has been devised by a special Select Committee of the Urban Council, of which the Senior Health Officer is an active member.
Rural Areas
89. Malaria has continued to remain a problem in the district around Sai Kung from whence some 83% of the notified cases of malaria emanale, In March 1959 a pilot scheme of malaria prophylaxis, using paludrine twice weekly, was started in two villages. Should the scheme prove practicable and successful it will be extended to include villages throughout the Sai Kung district.
90. An attempt to secure much more widespread use of composting as a means of refuse disposal has met with little success, there being a traditional reluctance to use compost as a fertilizer. Efforts will continue however and it is planned to improve scavenging and refuse
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disposal in the more remote villages by the employment of more labourers locally.
91. A development of considerable importance has been the provi- sion of a piped pure water supply for Tai O. All licensed restaurants now receive their water from this source.
92. At the 1959 New Territories Agricultural Show a Health Educa- tion Exhibition was staged at a stali acquired for the purpose. This attracted a good deal of interest and it is planned to repeat the experi- ment next year, on a more ambitious scale,
EPIDEMIOLOGY
93. During the year a total of 18,872 cases of notifiable communi- cable diseases was registered, representing an increase of 702 or 3.86% over that of the preceding year. The rise was mainly due to increase of 217 for poliomyelitis (from 45 to 262), 316 for diphtheria (from 1,239 to 1,555), 101 for whooping cough (from 96 to 197), 212 for malaria (from 447 to 659) and to the inclusion, for the first time, of 105 cases of ophthalmia neonatorum. Of the notifications, 15,270 or 80.9% were made by Government Hospitals and Clinics. 1,687 or 8.9% by the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals and the remaining 1915 or 10.2% by other hospitals and by private practitioners. The total number of deaths from these discases was 2,762 as compared with 2,965 in 1957, a drop of 6.9% and is the lowest recorded since 1949,
94. The incidence and mortality rates of notifiable diseases in 1958 were 686.8 and 100.5 per 100,000 of population respectively as against 703.4 and 114.8 in 1957.
95. The table at Appendix 2 gives the numbers of cases of and deaths from notifiable diseases reported in the Colony in 1958,
Influenza
96. This disease was made voluntarily notifiable following the wide- spread epidemic in 1957. There was no recurrence in epidemic form during the year, bul a total of 33,700 notifications was recorded, the incidence being highest in the second quarter of the year. Deaths attributed to the disease numbered 39. Nose and throat washings were sent at intervals to the Department of Bacteriology of the University of Malaya and Influenza A virus (Asian Type) was recovered on each occasion.
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