AnnualReport-1931

M 32-

107. Following the rescission there was a mass meeting of the Chinese at the Tung Wah Hospital where vigorous protests were made against the action of the Sanitary Board.

108. Among the Chinese the opinion is prevalent that the results of treatment of smallpox by Chinese methods are superior to those by Western methods. An analysis of statistics of (a) the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital, where the majority of cases receive Chinese treatment, and of (b) the Government Infectious Diseases Hospital, where Western treatment only is provided, shows however that this is not the case. Calculating on figures for the last twenty years the death rate in the Tung Wah was 46.77 per cent and that in the Government Hospital was 14.33 per cent.

Period Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital Government Infectious Diseases Hospital Cases Deaths Rate per cent Cases Deaths Rate per cent 1910 to 1930 1,240 580 46.77 286 41 14.33

109. With regard to 1931 the total number of cases brought to the notice of the authorities during the year was 15 as compared to 270 in 1930. There were eight deaths, nine cases were treated at the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital, four of whom died giving a case mortality of 44.44 per cent. Two cases were treated at the Government Hospital both of whom recovered.

110. During the year the vaccination campaign was continued, valuable assistance being afforded by the St. John Ambulance Brigade whose officers established booths in the streets and carried out an active propaganda advocating vaccination and revaccination with excellent results. Altogether 154,451 persons were vaccinated as compared with 244,789 in the previous year.

111. In the last four years there have been 981,241 vaccinations, a number exceeding the present population as enumerated by the census.

112. The General Chinese Public Dispensaries Committee recommended that the dispensaries should take a more active part in propaganda work. Arrangements were made for the Government Medical Department to cooperate by supplying material for the Committee's use.

Plague.

113. No case of human or rat plague was reported during 1931.