"تقارير إدارية ١٩٠٥-١٩١٠" [ظ‎‎٢‎٨‎٩] (٦١٦/٥٨٣)

76
ADMINISTRATION REPORT OF THE PERSIAN GULF
A note on the New Charitable Maskat Mutrah Hospital hy Captain N. N. G.
C. McVean, M.B., I.M.S., Agency Surgeon, Maskat.
The new Maskat Mutrah Hospital was opened at the end of October
1910. It is a large roomy building with ample accommodation for twenty
patients in nine different wards, thus providing separate accommodation for
the different classes of patients and special accommodation for females. A
ward with ample accommodation for two patients has been set aside for
European patients, it is well furnished and has a bath room attached, several
cases from the Navy have been healed here up to date.
There is a good operation room furnished with most otf the more neces
sary articles of surgical furniture and with a good supply of modern
instruments.
There is a roomy dispensary well equipped and a good dresser's room;
the latter has not yet been fully furnished but new furniture has been ordered.'
Very few operations have been performed so far, as the people are not
accustomed to the idea of surgical treatment. Should the numBer of patients
requiring operations increase, as it is hoped will be the case when the hospital
becomes well known, the present subordinate staff is hardly adequate.
Note on the Cholera epidemic in Maskat, in the Autumn of 1910, by Captain
N. N. G. C. McVean, I M.S., Agency Surgeon, Maskat.
Cholera broke out in Maskat towards the end of September and con
tinued, till the end of November; during that time there was a period, from
the 1st till the 19th of October, during which no case was heard of.
The cases occurred almost entirely among the Baluchis and Seedies of the
poorest classes who live outside the walls in miserable huts where the condi
tions are filthy in the extreme and where there is much crowding. Only about
ten cases occurred inside the town itself where the sanitary conditions are
considerably better.
The number of cases reported was 93, of these 81 died, but as the great
majority of cases were not reported till after death it may be assumed' that
many cases recovered which were not reported. However, the general health
and conditions of life of the class affected is poor which would help to account
for a very high mortality. Males and females were attacked in about equal
proportion. About 20 of the cases were children. The cases seen presented
the ordinary symptoms of cholera. Very few of the cases applied ?or medi
cines or, if they did, it was only when the disease was far" advanced. The
relations, etc., were advised to burn clothing and other articles infected or at
least to soak them well in antiseptics, which were supplied free for this
purpose. These suggestions were carried out in almost every case, and they
seem to have been fairly successful as generally not more than one case
occurred in each dwelling-
The infection was probably brought by dhows a large number of which
come here. The first cases heard of however were among people who had
been living in Maskat for some time. Cholera occurred in several other
places in Oman about the same time.