Sickness,
mortality and
invaliding.
136
MEDICAL AND SANITARY REPORT OF THE NATIVE ARMY OF BENGAL,
XV. Sickness, mortality and invaliding.— Strength of the regiment :—
Present
.
.
.
. .
. .
.
. . . 643.00
Absent
.
.
.
. .
. . .
. . . 47.65
Total . . 690.65
STATION.
PERIOD.
Strength.
TOTAL NUMBER
OF
Daily
average
number
of sick.
PER CENT. OF STRENGTH
PER ANNUM.
From
To
Admis-
sions. Deaths.
Admis- sions. Deaths.
Daily
average sick.
Head-quarters, Shergasha . 1st Jan. 1878 21st Feb. 1878 425.35 135
2 12.28 222.72 3.30 2.88
,, Peshawar . 22nd Feb. „ 19th Nov. „ 487.67 643
11 43.42 177.58 3.03 8.93
,, with Peshawar
Valley Field Force.
20th Nov. „ 31st Dec. „ 614.48 589
53 19.57 832.98 74.91 3.18
Detachment at Michnee .
8th Mar. „ 26th April ,,
89
6 ...
.49 49.22 ...
.55
19th Sep. „ 23rd Oct. „
89
30 ...
5.4 351.44 ...
6.06
,, Shubkudder
25th April „ 5th June „
89.57 13 ...
1.57 126.09 ... l.75
21st Sep. „ 24th Oct. „
90
49 ...
5.42 584.12 ...
6.02
,, Mackeson
4th June „ 5th July „
32
1 ...
.28 35.58 ...
.90
30th Oct. „ 8th Nov. „
32
2
. . . 1.28 228.12 . . .
4
„ Cherat
. 3rd June „ 6th July „ 111.59
8 ...
1.42 76.86 ...
1.27
Depôt at Peshawar . . 1st Jan. „ 21st Feb. „ 234.89 50
1 22.42 149.37 1.98 9.54
T O T A L .
...
...
643 1,526 67 41.73 237.32 10.42 6.49
Number of deaths in hospital 67 ; out of hospital 20 ; total
87 ; per cent. of total strength . 12.59
„
invalided . . . . . . . .
25 ;
„ „
. 3.75
„
sent on sick sick leave . . . . . .
13 ;
„ „
. 1.87
„
of days spent in hospital 16,667 ; per admission 10.75 ; per man of total strength
. 24.13
„
„ on sick leave 1,920; per man . . 14.76 ; „
„
2.78
Total temporary loss of service per man of total strength
.
. . 26.91
1875.
1 8 7 6 .
1877.
1878.
Total admissions . . . . . . . . .
387
1,935
1,392
1,549
Admissions per cent. of total strength . . . . .
56
275.16
182.9
223.81
Deaths
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
4
9
10
87
Deaths per cent. of total strength
. . . . .
.58
1.20
1.41
12.59
Daily average number of sick
. . . . . .
16.14
36.14
26.75
17.44
Average sick per cent. of strength
. . . . .
2.34
5.54
4.31
2.52
Total invalided . . . . . . . . .
7
12
11
25
invalided per cent. of total strength . . . . .
1.01
1.72
1.15
3.61
Sent on sick leave
. . . . . . . .
1
17
3
13
Sick leave per cent. of total strength . . . . .
.14
2.44
.42
1.88
Principal
causes of
mortality.
Epidemics.
XVII. Principal causes of mortality.— The chief causes of mortality were as follows :
—Ague (22), pneumonia (18), bronchitis (8), remittent fever (3), gunshot wound (9), murder (1)
(out of hospital). Nine men died at Dakka. There is no record of their deaths except in the
Adjutant's office, they being reported only as deaths out of hospital, the regiment having
marched.
XVIII. Epidemics.— There was an outbreak of pneumonia from which 18 men died in
hospital and which caused great havoc in the constitutions of the men. It has been said the
men broke down through their not getting their opium. About one man in five eats it habi
-tually, and of these few exceed 2 ruttees a day, as they are got rid of if they do exceed. The men
provided themselves (those who eat opium) with a month's supply on leaving. If the out
-break was referred to being left for 11 days with cold food and 5 days with no covering but
their great-coats, it would be much easier to trace the cause.