TRENTHAM CAMP.

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume XLIV, Issue 6495, 23 September 1915, Page 4

TRENTHAM CAMP.

O Report by Surgeon-General Henderson.

Wellington, Sept 22

In accordance v;ith a request from the Minister of Defence (Hon. J. Allen), Surgeon-General Henderson, Director of the Military Medical Ser- j vices, has submitted a report upon j the Trentham Camp. Surgeon-General : Henderson was asked to report upon the increase in hospital cases. His report is dated the 20th inst. He states that he perused the report of ,the Royal Commission and inspected the camp hospital at Trentham and he had found that at present there was no epidemic. The case 3of sickness in the hospital were chiefly due to influenza of a mild type and the numbers admitted -waj chiefly due to the excessive care, of the medical officers, who admitted all the men who were even mildly indisposed. As regards measles the cases were of a mild type, mostly of German measle?, and during the last three days there were only three ca-ses. The' hospital accommodation was ample end the patients were well cared for. As regards the camp itself th 3 huts were excsllent and compared favourably w'th those supplied in England. Theie was no necessity for the provision of separate dining halls in ihe present cemp. Surgeon-General Henderson considered the position ,of the huts as satisfactory and there was no objection to the intervals between the huts, although in future camp 3he considered it would be better to have them thirty feet apart. He did. not consider there was any overcrowding of the men, as the proportion of men t) the acre was at present 105. The roads being constructed had no surface drainage, but were quite satisfactory. He was satisfied there was no reason to fear an outbreak of any epidemic, owing to any lack of sanitation though they must be prepared for measles and influenza recrudescing.

Surgeon-Genreal Henderson makes some suggestions. He says hot and cold water were being provided and he understood would be ready at the end of the week. This was a very urgent matter. He . recommended , that the night soil should be disposed of by incinerators and experiments would be started The huts would be all fully disinfected in October for six days, between the time of the departure of one lot of troops and the arrival of another.

Other small recommendations and comments are contained in the report.