Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-04-09
D|PHTHER|A DRIVE
PLANS APPROVED
Campaign for lmmunization
of Small Children to
Start April 80.


Plans of the District Health author
flies to start this Summer city-wlde
campaign for immunization of pre-
school age. children against dphtheria
we're formally approved yesterday by
the Child Health dayMay day com
rnittee. which made arrangements TO
fncorporate in its program Tor
April 80. a strong appeal TO the pupilc
To protect children against the ols-
ease.
Announcement of the city's plans
was made by both DIR. Hugh }. DAVIS,
director OF the child hygiene service
OF the Health Department and CHAIR,
man of the May day committee, anQ
mr. 7 4. Murphy supervisory med
icaI insbector for the public schools.
They spoke at meeting of the com
r,oitfee in the Social Service House,
10a2 Eleventh street. Beginning June
I. they said. the campaign would start
to inamunize children at the city
various child hygiene clinics and at
rhe Children's Hospital, child welfare
department clinic.
Plans Made for Program.
unanimous Endorsement to this move
Inv the CITY. but agreed to expend
funds to carry the message more for
ciblv TO the parents Of the city during
the elaborate Child Health day-May
dav program to be held on April 30.
Preliminary arrangements also were
made for an extensive program dur.
ing the afternoon from $3.50 To
o'clock on the Ellipse. Nine tents will
be erected on the Ellipse for health
demonstrations and there will be mass
drilling and other formations by the
Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and Gold Star
children, 10 be selected from the city
schools because Of physical fitness.
and probably other features.
The committee authorized Miss Mar
garet H. Craig, chairman of the pro-
gram committee to conduct the pro-
gram with large groups in impressive
formations, instead of a number of
small groups. Parents will be urged
to take their children to the child
clinics for examination April 80
Forcefully presenting the need for
inlInunization Of children in Wash
ingtou against diphtheria, DR.. MUIR
ply declared that the average Of 80
deaths among Washington children
each year from diphtheria could be
much reduced by the protection pro-
pided by the treatment at the clinics.
On by private physicians.
stresses Tmmunixation Need.
'.Diphtheria," he said, lis exceed
9ngIy fatal TO very young children,
and to children of the pre-school age.
If we are going to reduce the school
child mortality, and the terrific risk
to children of the pre-school age. we
need a. big campaign to immunize
thousands Of children of the pre-school
age. The earlier the children are i'm
munized the better, az usually. the
younger the child the less the reae-
ton from the three injections.
The average number of cases of
diphtheria in Washington each year,
he said, was 500, and he suspected
that a great number of cases sus-
pected to be laryngitis might be bor
derinS on diphtheria, or, in fact, be
diphtheria He told of one family
here which had lost three, children
from what had been diagnosed as
Iaryn9itis, and the fourth child, which
had a. similar disease, was finally dis
covered TO have diphtheria, just be
fore 1t died, the last one in the family.
Immunization, DR.. Murphy declared.
would protect the child for about 10
syears, and the danger of the disease
resulting fatally would have been so
far reduced by the time the child was
10 years or older that the child then
would have comparative safety from
the expectation of death"
Shows Decrease i'm Deaths.
The high average fatalities for
diphtheria among little children was
shown by DR.. Murphy in a chart
of cases in Philadelphia, which he
called a typical example of condi-
tons generally. There, he reported.
the figures showed that during the
first year of a, chiid's life the
mortality in diphtheria was 20 per
showed. being Is per cent. at 2
years of age, IS per cent at 3, about
10 per cent at and 5, a little over
per cent at 6, below 5 per cent at
Z, little over 8 per cent at s. and
by 10 years of age the mortality had
dropped to ! per cent.
The most shining example of the
efficacy of immunization, he said
was the City of Auburn, n. Y,
which some years ago had a death
rate from diphtheria nearly as high
as Washington itself. There, he
said. they had been immunizing chill
dren until it was estimated that
about 80 per cent of the children
had received the treatment. Whereas
before there had been about 80
deaths year, he said the record
now showed at auburn that there
had been not a single death for more
than four years.
Celebrations April 80.
Child Health day-May day, which
rails on Sunday, May /, this year.
viii be observed in public cele-
brations on the previous Saturday. but
churches OF the city of all denomina.
tons and faiths viii be asked to pre-
sent the Importance of child health
at their Sunday services, both in the
Sunday school and church. Formal
notice was sent out by DIR. Davis yes
terd2y TO all the churches.
Examinations will be held in the
child hygiene clinics of the city and
probably In some schoolhouses on
April 30, it was announced by DIR.
Davis. Invitations had been sent out
70 physicians to offer their services
IN the examinations, he said, and an.
ewers were expected shortly.
DIR. Frank w. Ballou, superin.
tendent Of schools offered the co.opera.
ton of the school system in picking
the children physically fit. known as
gold star" children, for a special
demonstration on the Ellipse.
Spencer Wise of the dairy division
Of the Merchants and Manufacturers
Association presented the offer from
all diaries in the city to carry posters
on their milk wagons during Child
Health week, and special poster
viii be prepared by the committee
for this purpose. II was also an
1ounced that posters will be literally
distributed through the city by bus
street car and window display. BY