The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1907-03-07
HAUNTS OF DISEASE
SOUGHT BY STATE.
Doctor Dixon Striving to Collect
Reports on Contagious Cases
HEALTH BOARD ACTIVE.

cable diseases reported 10 the otate
Department Of Health last year,
4,421 were typhoid fever, o9o2
scarlet fever, 10 .s42 diphtheria and
23,72o measles.
Attempts to collect returns IN the
cases of communicable diseases have
been made in large cities, but in no
State has such reporting been made
compulsory throughout the rural
districts until the system inaugu-
mted by Health Commissioner
Dixon, in Pennsylvania, was put
III force. 1t has also been Doctor
Dixon's desire to make these re-
ports more comprehensive than airy
heret 1fore collected.
Reports of communicable diseases
in the rural districts are made di-
rect to the Department OF Health at
Harrisburg, ard also to the county
medical inspector, by the physicians
in attendance. Stamped report
cards are supplied to the physicians
for this purpose, and the following
diseases are classed as communica'
BILE Actinomycosis, anthrax, bu-
bonic plague, cerebro spinal men-
ingitis, chicken-pox cholera, diph-
,her a, epidemic dysentery, erysipe-
las. German measles, glanders,
hydrophobia, lepfosy, malarial
feve measles, mumps, true pneu'
nonia, puerperal fever, relapsing
fever, scarlet fever, smallpox, teta-
nus, trachoma, trichiniasis, tuber-
culosis, typhoid fever, typhus fever,
whooping cough and yellow fever.
Ii has been the custom to restrict
the list of reportable diseases, and
this has been due, it is said, to a
lack of recognition of the import
ance OF the diseases on the part OF
the public. With increasing knowl-
.dge OF the exact causes and me
thods of transmission of riany dis
eases has come a develop pment of
Methods of prevention, and mo-
dern sanitation, says Doctor Dixon,
demands that this knowledge be
used for public benefit. The report
" the physicians gives the date OF
report, name, occupation, country
nativity. age, sex, color and adj
lress of patient the name of the
!isease, date Of onset, name and oc-
cupation of the householder, num-
Der of school children in the family
md the school attended.
In connection with reporting
communicable diseases by the ply
,cians, Health Commissioner Dix
N said recently:
"I cannot too strongly express
he qualification l have expert
need at the hearty and prompt
iesponse which l have met from
most OF my fellow physicians to
-thi, new and somewhat unusual
demand upon their time and atten'
non. When it is remembered that
\ order to properly fill out postal
ard re port it is necessary to make
a distinct entries, in addition to
Late and signature, it will be under
TODD that the busy physician is
displaying commendable public
pirit when he promptly and COM
,le,ely complies with the require
nent. The value of the aid thus
.endered the department in our
fort to prevent the spread OF such
diseases cannot be overestimated.
~ this means we are able to keep
ur fingers on the pulse OF the
tate to its remotest corner, not to
ipeak of the value the statistics
We are thus enabled to gather will
Ie TO the world.
During the coming year l fee
-ure we will get far more report:
from the physicians than we have
teen doing, for the prompt pla
carding of every case in the rura
districts by the health officers, tina
We are now appointing, and th'
shsinfectior of the premises upoi
the termination of the case, will b'
an added incentive to the physici
ans to report their cases promptly
"We cannot overestimate the i'm
portance of these statistics. NJ
police force can be effective unles
it knows the haunts the criminals
SO the health officials must know
where disease turks and under wha
conditions and among what classe
of people 1t flourishes. The Divi
sion of Morbidity Statistics of tn
Department of Health is now ell
gagged in tabulating the S7,75
cases OF communicable diseases re
ported during 1906.
"These statistics will be analyZe
for the purpose of comparing ther
with the records of deaths from tn
same diseases Not alone will tnes
statistics be valuable in the inImed
-. g .I,t nno;apt licAnca