HH62/2/ROSS/45

Transcription

[Page] 44

Ross Memorial Hospital at Dingwall; and second, the Hospi-
tal at Stornoway. The latter I have already spoken of in my
general survey of the County. I have also indicated the pres-
sing need for more Local Hospitals, and the means I would
suggest of organising a Nursing Staff for their due and efficient
working. We can fortunately point to our Infirmary in Ding-
wall as an encouragement to other districts. Beginning in a
modest way, it has expanded to its present position where it
supplies the needs for an infectious hospital to a large part of
the County - not, of course, to the larger portion, which is, as
yet, unsupplied. Having had the experience of starting and
carrying on perhaps the first County Hospital for infectious
and other diseases opened in Scotland, I persuaded the mana-
gers to add infectious wards to the original scheme. I can
confidently affirm that these wards have done an incalculable
amount of good in this community, both in staying the spread
of infectious disease and in providing the best of nursing to
those unfortunately affected. On several occasions Strathpeffer
has had to thank Dingwall for, it may be, preventing a panic in
that fashionable watering-place and a stampede of its visitors!
The Dingwall Hospital can claim to possess the first ambulance
on wheels existing in Scotland I may be allowed to add that
I think the medical attendants of fever cases in the hospitals
should be paid fair fees for their services. Most of the patients
can afford a fee and would have had to give it if they had re-
mained and been attended at their own homes; and such being
the case it is scarcely reasonable or just that the doctor should
suffer by recommending, as he invariably does, his clients to
take advantage of the care, nursing, and increased medical at-
tention they get in that valuable institution.

We should properly at this point, consider the different dis-
trict reports, more especially as bearing on the condition of
Slaughter-Houses, Dairies, Bake-Houses and Common Lodging-
Houses. As regards the latter they may be said to be non-
existent in the County proper, and are few even in the Burghs.
But there is, it must be feared, much overcrowding. Only a
house to house visitation can cope with this mischief, and so
the question must be postponed until a proper working staff
is organised. We hope shortly to have these matters arranged
and then to be able to set to work, not only with this source of
disease, but also with the condition of the other subjects already
mentioned. We may note in passing, that we have found the
Bake-Houses almost all in good order with the exception of one
in Ullapool. The Slaughter-Houses, as far as inspected, are
much in want of regulation and supervision, and so also are
Dairies. As regards these latter, there are not many accord-
ing to the technical distinctions in the County. The condition

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of Graveyards too will have to be carefully noted, and where
the ground is too limited as it is in many cases, additional
Cemetery accommodation will have to be recommended and it
may be enforced.

In conclusion, I have to express the hope that the Public
Health organisation in the County may soon be fixed on a satis-
factory and permanent basis. The views of the Sanitary In-
spector and myself are before the Public Health Committee,
and would, we believe if carried out, secure the wished-for re-
sult of all sanitary efforts, viz., the steady improvement of the
health of the County, and the restriction of preventible disease
within the narrowest possible limits.