Surgery.
Proposed exten
sion of surgical
practice.
54
REPORT OF THE
Sickness and mor
tality according
to sex and age.
Death rate reduced
among all classes.
population, and adopting measures to prevent the possibility of its becoming polluted by
sewage containing cholera poison, will have to be developed in every important town in
Lower Bengal. To sanitary measures we must look for the reduction of the sickness and
mortality from cholera, inasmuch as it must be admitted that remedies are of little avail
unless cases are brought early under treatment, and this is seldom the case in hospital
practice.
In the foregoing statements the whole sickness and mortality amongst men, women
and children, have been dealt with collectively. I now propose to show in the subjoined
statement how the sickness and mortality have been distributed amongst these three classes
during the seven years ending with, and exclusive of, 1871.
MEN.
WOMEN.
CHILDREN.
Year.
Treated. Died.
Deaths per
mille.
Treated. Died.
Deaths per
mille
Treated. Died.
Deat hs per
mile.
1865
... 2,134
148
69 16
177
13
73 44
120
9
75.00
1866
... 2,051
214
100.33
226
14
62.50
139
10
71.94
1867
... 1,931
123
63.69
284
12
42.25
162
17
104.93
1868
... 2,019
142
70.33
267
21
78 65
163
14
85.88
1869
... 2,224
119
53.50
270
13
48.14
147
8
54.42
1870
... 2,167
109
50.30
263
15
57.00
121
11
90.90
Total ... 12,545
855
68.15
14.89
88
59 10
852
69
80.98
1871
... 2,059
76
36.91
340
8
23 52
147
9
61.22
Thus it appears that in no year of the series has the general rate of mortality to treated
among men and women been so low as during the past year, whilst in children, with the
exception of 1869, the death-rate has been much lower in 1871 than in any of the remain-
ing five years.
The average ratio of deaths per thousand among men, women and children, during the
six years ending 1870, amounted to 68.15, 59.10, and 80.98 respectively ; whilst during 1871
it stood at 36.91, 23.52, and 61.22, showing a reduction of—
31.24 per mille among the men.
35.58
,,
,,
,,
women.
19.76
,,
,,
,,
children.
Surgery.—During the past year two cases remained over from the previous year ; twenty-
four new operations were performed among the men and one among the women, and every
one of these has been completely successful. I am of opinion, with my predecessor, that the ;
time has now arrived for enlarging our sphere of action in this important department,
and I trust the question on reconsideration will receive the favourable decision of the
Inspector-General of Hospitals. Perhaps it is true that among the class of patients now
admitted, surgical practice is fairly represented at the General Hospital ; but in this
country a preponderating share of surgery is furnished by the native population, for which
the hospital is not at present available. Now that the hospital is a purely civil one, it
is in every way desirable that arrangements be made for the admission and treatment
of surgical cases as these are presented among the native community, not only in the
interests of the professional staff and the young medical officers who do duty here on their
arrival at this Presidency, but in the interests of the large native population in the vicinity
of the hospital. As a beginning I would propose that arrangements be made for the
accommodation of a dozen surgical native cases in the basement floor of the western building.
I believe this expansion of our system might be carried out at a trifling additional cost,—
very trifling indeed as compared to the benefits likely to accrue from the change.