Report on Vaccination in the Central Provinces
during the Season 1878-79.
The returns made up to the 31st of March show fewer operations per-
formed both by the Vaccine establishment and by Hospital Assistants than are
exhibited in the returns for the previous year. Formerly it was the custom to
continue vaccination during April and in some places during a part of May, or
as long as good vesicles were produced ; and these operations were included in the
returns for the season just closed. With a view, however, to carry out orders
regarding the early submission of the Sanitary report, in which vaccination
returns are exhibited, Civil Surgeons were asked to make up their returns to
the 31st of March this year, submit them at once, and reserve any operations
performed subsequent to that date for the following year's statements. This
partly accounts for fewer numbers : it does not, however, fully do so.
2. The Deputy Commissioner of Bilaspur, with a view to set vaccination
going in Zamindaris in that district, requested the Civil Surgeon to entertain
and instruct three men for this duty, keeping them under his own eye for a
time, until proficient in the work, and in order to save a season, detailing tem-
porarily to the Zamindaris three experienced men from the establishment.
Major Brooke has reported that the Officiating Civil Surgeon not only failed to
teach the new men, but despatched them to distant circles, where they did but
little, most probably from ignorance of how to set to work. The result was
that their combined work only reached 1,720 or less than the average outturn
per man in the district. The Deputy Commissioner characterises this action on
the part of the Assistant Surgeon as a " scarcely excusable administrative
blunder," but I am rather inclined to regard it as a case of inexcusable neglect.
The work of two men was thus lost to the district, whilst the work of the men
temporarily detached is not shown in the returns.
3. In the Khairagarh and Nandgaon States in Raipur also a beginning
was made ; vaccinators were entertained late in the season ; the results of their
work have not been reported ; the returns for the ensuing season will be exhi-
bited.
4. Against the reduced numbers caused by closing the returns on the 31st
of March, and the action of the Officiating Civil Surgeon in Bilaspur, must be
placed the fact that four additional men were entertained in Native States in
Sambalpur, the results of whose work appear in the returns. The general result
is that the statements show a falling off in numbers of 7,611 as regards the vac-
cination establishment, and of 836 on the work done by Hospital Assistants, or
a total of 8,447. The average number of operations performed by each
vaccinator is given at 1,718. The Sambalpur district gives the highest average
2,639, and Nagpur the lowest or 1,109. The operations performed by Civil
Surgeons and Native Superintendents are excluded from these calculations.
5. The total number of primary operations was only 471 less than during
the previous year. Primary operations on children under six years of age were
2,661 in excess of the number for the previous year, whilst operations on persons
above that age were fewer; and re-vaccination which was chiefly confined to the
Chhindwara and Betul districts fell from 11,805 to 5,551 : those districts have
not shown a corresponding increase under primary vaccination Re-vaccination
is not attempted in some districts ; and so long as the establishment is unable
to vaccinate all the children born, it is better that their entire time should be
engaged in protecting as many of them as possible in preference to re-vaccinat¬
ing those who are already fairly protected.
6. The number of successful operations per cent of total vaccinated is
given at 96 or a little in excess of that for the previous year. Instances of
wilfully recording operations as successful which were known to the vaccinators
as the reverse are rare ; I think as a rule they are faithfully recorded, although
there may be a difference of opinion as to the quality of the operation. Vaccina-