TOO SLOW!

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 8, Issue 70, 4 May 1945, Page 5

TOO SLOW!

HEALTH DEPARTMENT CRITICISED

CONTROL OF RECENT OUTBREAK

Trenchant criticism of the Health Department in its methods of dealing with the recent outbreak of diphtheria wasi voiced by speakers at the last meeting of the Whakatane County Council, when it was alleged that there had been undue and dangerous delay in giving effect to counter-measures to combat the complaint. # • Cr Leslie cited the experience ol' several residents at Otakiri where he said the parents had been notified that the Medical Officer for the district had agreed to visit the centre to innoculatc the children. Several appointments were, not kept. All told it took a month to get him and another month before the work was done. People were very dissatisfied and he thought the position hopeless. Cr McCready mentioned a case brought to his notice in which ho alleged a parcel of 'swabs' from saspect c|d cases, had gone astray. Cr Leslie claimed that the greatest anxiety had been felt in his district regarding" the apparent tardiness of the Health Officer. Cr McCready considered the Council well within its rights in (demanding of the Department a far better preventative service in the event of outbreaks, and epidemics in the future'. The Council decided to advise the Medical Officer of Health (Gisborne) that complaints had Jj'een received that the diphtheria injections for school children of Otakiri had been unduly delayed.