prised 46% of total cases. Of the infectious cases 53 were admitted to the Hay Ling Chau Leprosarium maintained by the Leprosy Mission-- Hong Kong Auxiliary, with which the Social Hygiene Service main- tains close liaison.
58. During recent years there has been some advance in overcoming the prejudice against employment of cured leprosy patients, and to this end great attention is paid by the Service to the prevention of disabilities in tuberculoid cases.
Dermatology
59. The incidence of skin diseases is shown in Table 28. There was a very low incidence of skin cancers. A clinical investigation into the etiology of erythema induratum was undertaken. It is concluded that tuberculosis plays a very important part in the etiology of erythema induratum in Hong Kong.
PORT HEALTH
(Table 30)
60. The Port Health Administration continued its routine duties in respect of prevention of the introduction of quarantinable infectious diseases, the sanitary control of ports of entry, the provision of facilities as required by the International Sanitary Regulations, and a regular exchange of epidemiological information with the World Health Organization as well as with ports and airports in other countries.
61. With the increasing importance of Hong Kong as a tourist and an international transit centre, the work of the Service has gradually increased during recent years. The increase of shipping entering the port has resulted in an extension of the quarantine service to give a full 24-hour daily cover. This service also pays special attention to travellers to the nearby ports of Macao and Kwangtung province, and to vessels from plague-infected regions.
DISTRICT MIDWIFERY SERVICE
(Table 31)
62. Over 99% of births took place in institutions, either hospitals or maternity bomes. Of these approximately 20% were in maternity centres attached to Government clinics and 22.3% were attended by midwives in private practice; the remainder took place in Government, Government-subsidized and private hospitals.
그다
63. Owing to the difficulties of domiciliary delivery under existing housing conditions it has been the Department's policy to provide maternity beds in health centres. The maternity home in Sha Tau Kok Clinic has been suspended since June 1967. Maternity cases in the area are delivered in Shek Wu Hui Jockey Club Clinic. The only domiciliary midwifery centre, in Tai Wo Hau Resettlement Estate, has been permanently closed since 1st April, 1969, owing to the small number of deliveries, which could be looked after at the Maurine Grantham Health Centre. The maternity unit in the Eastern Public Dispensary was transferred to Tang Shiu Kin Hospital on 16th April, 1969. This resulted in an increase of 12 maternity beds.
MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH SERVICE
(Tables 32-331
64. There is increasing public appreciation of the value of these services in the maintenance of health amongst infants and expectant and nursing mothers, and 85,2% of children born attended a Centre on at least one occasion; the corresponding figure for 1968 was 84.4%. Approximately 1% of the new attendants at infant welfare centre were found to have abnormalities; of these the majority were either cod- genital defects or the effects of prematurity. A further encouraging trend is the increasing appreciation by expectant mothers of the need for regular ante-natal care as reflected in the average attendances per person at anle-natal sessions and by the low maternal mortality rate.
65. With effect from mid-April 1969, the full-time clinic in Harcourt Health Centre was transferred to the Tang Shiu Kin Hospital which is also provided with 36 maternity beds, thus, making another full-time clinic with an attached maternity ward. The subsidiary centre at Arsenal Street Police Primary School, Hong Kong, was permanently suspended because of poor attendances and the availability of the full- time clinic in the same district. A new subsidiary centre began to operate in the Ho Tung Dispensary in October 1969, in order to reduce the congestion at the Shek Wu Hui Clinic.
SCHOOL HEALTH SERVICE
66. The Medical and Health Department provides an advisory service to the Education Department on matters relating to environ- mental health and hygiene in schools. Inspection of schools is carried out by School Health Inspectors with special regard to lighting, ventila-
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