Infantile Paralysis

Press, Volume LXXII, Issue 21974, 24 December 1936, Page 10

Infantile Paralysis

Despite a great amount of activity on the part of the public health authorities and despite the prominence given to official advice and warnings in the press and over the air, it is regrettably apparent that the general public does not yet take very seriously the threat of an epidemic of infantile paralysis. As anyone who has been in the city during the last few days will be aware, children are still congregating freely in shops and streets, and if parents are making any attempt to follow the advice of the authorities the results are not apparent. So far, local health officers have been content to rely on the voluntary co-operation of the community in their efforts to prevent the epidemic from spreading, but unless the community shows a keener sense of responsibility in the matter than it has done in the last few days, it will clearly be necessary to consider the imposition of severe restrictions on the movements of children. Although that is a step which will involve inconvenience and expense, it should be taken without hesitation if the effort to localise the epidemic seems likely to be defeated by public apathy.