The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1923-01-25
ONE DOLLAR FOR PREVENTION
BEATS TEN FOR A CURE.


By systematic effort much disease
in Garrett county could be prevented.
Despite our wonderful health-giving
climate public health here is far from
perfect.
During the past year there have
been 21S deaths in Garrett county.
Over 100 of these are classed by up
to-date physicians as being Tor the
greater part preventable thru public
education and early preventative
measures. Think Of it-nearly one
half of the deaths in Garrett county
last year could probably have been
prevented.
The number Of infants who die in
Garrett county before they are one
year old is appalling. OF the 5o2
children born in the county last year,
100 of them died either before birth
or before they had passed their
twelfth month. A large num-
Der of these infant deaths, pedio-
tritians say, could have been pre-
vented by knowledge and proper care.
The epidemics Of dyphtheria, scar
let fever and typhoid fever which
break out frequently here and there
over the county could b. prevented.
"This fall and winter" said one Of
our leading physicians recently, mot
one out of ten cases of contagious
children's diseases, like scarlet fever
and dyphtheria, has been reported to
any physician"
Failure on the part Of parents to
isolate and to report light" cases
of contagious disease is the cause Of
epidemics and of the hard" case
that results in some child's death.
The public health nurse could help
greatly in preventing disease and. in
doing away with epdemics.
The Nurses Salary is Paid By All,
For All.
The services of the public health
are free for every home Many peo-
pie who hesitate to report disease in
their homes when expense to them
is involved would be glad to accept
the help the nurse could give them
free.
Dorchester and Kent Counties Show
Greatly Improved Health Since
They Have the Public Health Nurse
That the public health nurse has
improved public health of Kent county
is indicated by the following facts:
Since she began her work in 1917
School attendance has improved;
The death rate from tuberculosis
: has dropped 40 per cent.
+ 1920 was the first year in it's his
? tory that Kent county had no deaths
from typhoid fever.
In Dorchester county, like Kent, an
Eastern Shore county, in every way
comparable to it, the school atten-
dance did not improve, and the death
rate did not drop until 1921, when a
public health nurse did her first years
work in the County. In this year
school attendance was greatly i'm
proved and the death rate from tu-
bercuIosis dropped from 236 (per
100000 population in 1920 to 1853 in
1921.
The State Board of Health Backs the
Movement For Public Health Nurses.
DR.. J. H. Mason Knox, former Field
Director of the American, Red Cross
in Europe, has recently become Chief
of the Bureau of Child Hygiene of
the Maryland Board of Health. He
writes the following message to Gar
rett county people:
"All intelligent citizens of the coun-
ty must agree that the promotion of
public health in a county is one of
the most important duties of citizen
ship.
Garrett county is so blessed with
naturally healthful climate that with
some additional attention to those
matters which promote public health,
it could be made almost a record