M 34
86. Vital Statistics of European Officials.
Number of Europeans (excluding temporary school mistresses)
Average number resident in the Colony
Number invalided during 1934:-
(a) when on leave at home
(b) in the Colony
Number died during 1934:-
(a) in the Colony
(b) when on leave at home
PART II.-HEALTH CONDITIONS.
985
843
2
6
8
3
1
4
GENERAL REMARKS.
87. In the absence of some general system of registration of sickness, the only sources of information available for gauging the state of the public health in this Colony are the returns relating to deaths, the notifications of infectious diseases and the records of Government and Chinese hospitals. Judging from the death returns the health of the Colony was better than that of the previous year. The crude death rate was 20.93 per mille as compared with 22.11 for 1933.
88. Respiratory diseases accounted for 39.97 per cent of the total deaths; the percentage for 1933 was 41.93. The principal diseases causing death were broncho-pneumonia, pulmonary tuberculosis, bronchitis, infantile diarrhoea and diarrhoea.
89. The overcrowded houses, the expectorating habits of the people, and poverty furnish sufficient explanation for the prevalence of respiratory troubles.
MALARIA.
90. Owing to efficient drainage methods this disease has disappeared from the greater part of the urban districts. It still persists, however, in the suburbs and in the rural areas. There are parts of the New Territories where the spleen rate is as high as 41.4%.
91. Malaria not being a notifiable disease the incidence figures are unknown. The cases admitted to the Government Hospitals numbered 457 as compared to 482 in the previous year. The percentage of deaths to cases admitted was 1.31. Among the Chinese Hospitals there were 839 admissions with a case mortality rate of 18.35 per cent.