NOTES AND STATISTICS ON VACCINATION IN BURMA FOR THE YEAR 1915-16.
3
46,676, or 11.82 per cent.; Native Superintendents verified 193,786 or 49.09
per cent. The corresponding ratios for 1914-15 were civil surgeons, etc., 17.22
per cent. and Native Superintendents of Vaccination 56.75 per cent. Of the total
persons primarily vaccinated 60.91 per cent. were verified. Of revaccinations,
civil surgeons verified 7.75 per cent. and Native Superintendents of Vaccination
49.24 per cent.
The falling off in the verification work performed by civil surg eons and
other superior officers may partly be due to the absence on military duty of one
Deputy Sanitary Commissioner and many of the more experienced civil surgeons
during the year. Newly appointed District Medical Officers would be less able
to give time during the earlier months of duty to making tours in the districts.
The decrease in the verification work performed by Native Superintendents of
Vaccination is not open to a similar explanation. It is partly accounted for. by
the diminution in the strength of the Native Superintendent staff.
Appendix .B
10. Compulsory vaccination.—Vaccination is compulsory only in towns. The
statement in Appendix B compares the number of infants available for vaccination
and the number vaccinated during the year in 57 towns. The total registered
survivors of births during the year was 19,398, and the number of infants vacci-
nated 20,951, an excess of 1,553 over the total survivors. This excess is mainly
to be explained by neglect to register births, and by the inclusion in the total of
visitors to the towns.
Towns showing the largest excess of vaccinated infants over the number of
survivors of registered births are Rangoon 658, Moulmein 236, Syriam 134,
Mandalay 1,297, Pyinmana 225, Yamèthin 104, Myingyan 163. In Upper Burma
towns defective registration is the probable explanation of the excess as is often
indicated by a relatively low registered birth-rate. This has frequently been
noticed in the case of Pyinmana, Pyawbwè and Yamèthin.
Defective vaccination is a prominent feature of the returns of Prome, 238
only being vaccinated out of 584 survivors, a deficit of 346 or 59.25 per cent.;
Thôngwa, deficit 50.30 per cent; Zigôn of 40.70, Nattalin of 45.83, Kyangin of
63.04, Bhamo 47.10, Yenangyaung of 62.69 per cent. Enquiry will be made into
the cause of these low vaccination ratios where not already satisfactorily explained.
In 57 towns 31,973 primary successful operations at all ages were reported,
an increase of 468 upon the returns of 1914-15. In a considerable number of
towns the excess over the previous year of successful work performed marks a
praiseworthy increase of activity on the part of the town vaccination staff.
Special credit is to be given to the staffs of towns in Ma-ubin, Myaungmya and
Pyapôn districts. In Myaungmya and to a less extent in Wakèma the improve-
ment was very great ; and in Pyapôn and Kyaiklat it was marked. On the other
hand, an almost equal number of towns show a falling off in vaccination work,
among the most noticeable being Pegu with a deficit of 648 successful primary
operations, nearly 50 per cent. of last year's total; Yenangyaung (252), only 91
successes against 343 in the previous year; Paungdè (128); all the towns in
Tharrawaddy District except Letpadan ; Thôngwa (243, over 50 per cent. deficit).
11. Voluntary vaccination.—Until very recently none but the very vaguest con-
ception could be formed as to the degree of protection against small-pox obtaining
in any area of the Province as the result of vaccination. But within the last
two years a system of investigation by taking a careful vaccination census of the
child population of groups of villages has been adopted, at intervals, and in
selected areas, which has yielded very useful results. The following statistical
returns are samples of the information thus rendered available.
Lower Burma. Twante Subdivision, Hanthawaddy District.—In a group
of ten villages, comprising a census population of 9,860 persons, inspected by my
Deputy, Lieutenant-Colonel Lalor, I.M.S., the following results were obtained :—
Of the total estimated population aged 0-10, 85.20 per cent. were actually
seen and 53.86 per cent. of this (estimated) population were found to be success-
fully vaccinated. Of the estimated population of infants, 88.73 per cent. were
seen, and only 12.11 per cent. of the estimated total were found to be vaccinated.
At ages 0-5 the percentage seen was 83.06, and the percentage of estimated
total found vaccinated was 41.27. At ages 5-10, the percentages of the
estimated total seen, and found to be successfully vaccinated, were respectively
87.83 and 53.86.
Upper Burma, Kyauksè District.—A population of 2,400 living in three
village groups was subjected to a careful vaccination census by myself. Of the
total estimated population aged 0-10, 70.88 per cent. were seen, and 56.62
per cent. found to be successfully vaccinated. Of estimated living infants 93.10
were seen, and 20.70 per cent. found to be successfully vaccinated. At ages
0-5, 76.74 per cent. of the estimated total were seen, and 56.13 per cent. found