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VI. MEDICAL AND PUBLIC HEALTH In accordance with the provisions of the Cook Islands Act, 1915, all Cook Islanders receive free medical and surgical treatment, both in their villages and in the hospital and the sanatorium. Native patients in the hospital and the sanatorium and all school-children receive free dental treatment. The following summary shows the amounts expended on health sendees in recent years :

Hospital statistics are tabulated hereunder :

The Dental Department has treated patients as follows :

General health throughout the group has been good. In February and March, 1946, there was an outbreak of cerebro-spinal fever at Atiu ; fifteen cases had occurred, and there had been eight deaths up to the 31st March. - Atiu, Mauke, and Mitiaro also suffered epidemics of trachoma in February and March, 1946. The regular R.N.Z.A.F. plane made a special trip in March to drop medical supplies by parachute at Atiu and Mauke. In March, also, the Acting Chief Medical Officer made a special trip by launch to Atiu, where he advised regarding the treatment of the cases of cerebro-spinal fever, and a Native medical practitioner was left there till the outbreak had subsided. Poliomyelitis made its first recorded appearance in the Group with four cases in Rarotonga no deaths occurred, and in two cases slight paralysis resulted. Strict quarantine precautions prevented the spread of the disease to other islands of the Group. Ten cases of Weil's disease were reported in Rarotonga in April, 1945, and many cases of pneumonia occurred during the months of December, 1945, and January and February, 1946.

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— 1941-42. 1942-43. 1943-44. 1944-45. 1945-46. Amount expended Population Amount per head £10,795 13,962 15s. 5d. £10,370 14,079 14s. 9d. £10,116 14,150 14s. 4d. £12,724 14,506 17s. 6d. £14,535 15_005 19s. 4d.

— 1941-42. 1942-43. 1943-44. 1944-45. 1945-46. In-patients Out-patients Visits Injections, all types Anaesthetics — General Local Operations— Major Minor Confinements Artificial pneumothorax X-rays Dental extractions 355 4), 556 1,020 596 46 184 27 261 42 8 68 128 405 12,541 1,915 438 64 340 9 464 24 16 173 89 570 8,574 1,382 360 42 152 9 254 30 31 63 446 8,603 1,374 577 52 336 101 467 63 39 91 469 6,895 1,145 453 30 37T 26 440 43 77 95

— 1941-42. 1942-43. 1943-44. 1944-45. 1945-46. Extractions Fillings Cleaning, &c. 1,339 157 235 953 935 157 1,130 1,964 37 1,533 1,382 38 1,713 915 239