Norwich bulletin., 1919-10-24
PHYSICIANS SHOULD REPORT
 ALL COMMUNICABJE DISEASE

All active physicians are quasi public health officials. Licensed by the state to practice their profession. they are allowed the broad discretion which is needed in all matters re- quiring the exercise of individual Judgment and initiative. In return for the special privileges granted them. the state imposes on physicians portant of which is the reporting of communicable diseases, says Dr. T. F. Reeks of the Connecticut depart ment of health in his weekly bulletin. Theoretically all communicable dis eases are preventabIe. But they are not prevented: and so each year this small state suffers an economic loss amounting to millions Of dollars which might be saved. The annual wastage in lives. health and dollars goes on without protest merely because we have been accustomed for generations to look upon the common communica
 ble diseases IS necessary and inevita- ble evils. There is nothing spectac
 uIar in the daily dribbIe of deaths from these ordinary causes. Oniy when the yearly tota's are compu
 ta ted io the figures .se.ume impressive enough for special comment
 Public health departments were in- stituted chiefly to combat contagious diseases. Their history is record quests. One by one the ancient scourges yield to the superiority of applied science and sanitation, And yet despite the visible and acknowl edged progress in the war against ba
 cnli, health workers become impa- tient with all contagion which might be prevented.
 The reporting of communica ble dis eases is required by law in order that the state may know how and where the public health is endangered. The logical way to prevent the spread of an infection is to isolate the source. The law prescribes the manner in which isolation is to be effected and provides officers clothed with author ity to enforce it. By it's mandatory character it is intended to relieve physicians of attempting personally to restrict the movements of a patient or other members of an infected fam fly.
 Whenever a physician fails to report a communicable disease. the entire community is unnecessarily exposed to the contagion. Such failure may be attributed to sheer negligence, to will ful disregard of the obligations inn posed by statue, or to mistake in diagnosis. In the latter event the fail ure is excusable; for it is an expert ence which happens among the wisest physicians: but there is no excuse for negligence or refusal to report. The method provided is too simple to be burdenSome. It is a fact, neverthe- less, that many physicians dere- lict in this regard and that limit ed number refuse fiatly to obey the law. particularly as it applies to the reporting Of tuberculosis and the ve- nereal diseases.
 During the next few months this department will make special drive to secure better reporting from phy- sicians. Health officers in every town are urged to take up this matter with all physicians within their respective jurisdictions. Newspapers can be of great assistance in this work by Stim- ulating a public demand for the pro- lection which prompt reporting gives.
 The value of the Weekly Morbid ity Report depends very largely on the promptness with which reporta- ble diseas ses are recorded at this of flee. The report is mailed each Mon day to every health officer and news paper in Connecticut, and it is inn portant that it show as accurately as possible the incidence Of communica,- ble diseases throu ghout the state.