HEALTH OF SAMOA

Stratford Evening Post, Volume II, Issue 241, 12 May 1933, Page 3

HEALTH OF SAMOA

Campaign Against Yaws

HUMANITARIAN WORK AMONG NATIVES

(By Press Association Special

Representative.)

Apia (Samoa), April 21. Our of the diseases which afflict the Samoan people is yaws, an unpleasant complaint which affects a very large proportion of the native population. A little over a year ago it was resolved to launch an examination and injection campaign against, the disease and this is now in operation. The campaign is being conducted by the Western Pacific Health Service. and is worked in conjunction with the Rockefeller Foundation on a 50 per cent, basis. The Chief Medical Officer of Western Samoa- (Dr. Ernest Hunt), Apia, is working under the direction of the Medical Director for the Rockefeller Found:'.! ion in the Western Pacific (Dr. S. M. Lambert), whose headquarters are at Suva. The campaign started on April 11, 1932. It was originally intended to have the population of the two islands injected by one practitioner, but it was found that it would take him at least 16 months to do the two islands. It was considered advisable to put on two native medical practitioners at. first, and ultimately three were detailed to do the work. It was commenced on the island of Savaii, as it was believed that this area was easier to manage. The response was good. There had been no census taken wince ID2G, and the principle on which the population figures were obtained was that in each village, before injections were made, a census was obtained from responsible people in the village. It is believed that the figures obtained were reasonably accurate. The census revealed a population of 44 126 in the two islands of Savaii and Upolo. Of these 38,502, or 87.4 per cent., were examined, and a very large proportion were given two injections, one week intervening between each treatment. Actually first injections were given to 38.166 people which is 8G.4 per cent, of the population. Those receiving a second treatment or further injections numbered 35 922, which is 81.4 per cent, of the population. The total number of injections, first and second, etc., was 74 088. Nobody was refused an injection, and it is considered that the response was very good indeed. As far as can be judged at present, the effect is as good as could be expected. The object of the second year's campaign, which begins on May 1, is to reinject these people, and at the same time examine them carefully m order to note the results of the first years injections. Another objective is to get about 3000 Kahn tests in order to ascertain the results of the injections. This is important, but. lias only been done so far as is known in Jamaica. Ihe Kahn test is a serological blood test revealing whether the subject from whom the blood is taken responds or not to the test.