PLAN TO OUST TUBERCULOSIS

Chronicle (Levin), 6 September 1946, Page 5

PLAN TO OUST TUBERCULOSIS

HlGII DEATH ROLL AMONGST MAORIS WELLLXdTON, Sept. 5. | With thc incidcnce of tubcrculosis si\ I tinics as grcat in ihe .Uaori populatio;. : of Xew Zcaland cornpared with Euro ])cans, and tlic death rate 10 times greater, a comjirehensive plan to den with the.ravages of T.B. is bcing con sidcred for the Dominion, said ari authority today. Part of the pro granime, it was lioped, would lie thi' ■ cxtended use throughout the country oi a plant similar in tvpe to the mobilc X-ray unit at present, being used witn . success in. the Taranaki distruit among • 0e"MarQri?,"' By -the^e- ef il^ ;piA-n|t.'i3 : fw.oufil "ablqi'to types^ .. qf only ..InjV; as cakeA" wero 'jnost dangefous 4o' the confhiunity from' tlre point -of view of infection, the re sults gained by the plant were most beneJiciai. It was considered that should results shown in Taranaki from the use of the equipment warrant it an extensive applieation of such niethods to other parts will followu ' The establishment of local T.B. regis | tcrs in liospital clinics, it was stated ! would iniprove investigations of uu ascertaincd groups tliougli in some area.tlie cooperation of hosjiital ehest clinic.jliad been excellenit. Two establisheo ! beds per annual death was the targei [aimed at for facilities in liospitals and : sanatoriums but the delayed decision on I the poliev of liospital finance was responsible for the tardiness of some liospital boards to advance their build ing programmes. Consideration at present was being given to proposals to amend legislation to enable better control to be exereised The augmenting of the district nurs ing staff during the past vear by 41, had relieved tlre situation and some remarkably good work had been done, particu larly in the ease of finding. During the past year, the total nunv ber of T.B. households under controi was f!S()5, while the total number of eontacts under surveillance was 22,955 The Wellington metropolitan area liad the highest ineidence rate and highes' death rate for Europeans while thc western districts had the highest inci dence rate and death rate for Maoris as well as the highest ineidence rate for the combined races. Service personnel who had eontracte 1 T.B. and who were receiving a full pension and were under supervision and treatment at Alarcli .'>1, 1945, totalle 939 of whom ,593 saw overseas servici and 34(5 service in Xew Zealand. A very important part of the pre ventive programme in New Zealand wa« the segratiou of active infectious patients. Their > contribution to thc 'podl of in'fecf'ioYi in tlre comtnutii'tv was withdrawn and the amount of infection I aecordinglv reduced.