MODERN TENDENCIES IN PUBLIC HEALTH WORK

Abstract

T HE BRANCHES of a modern city health department are numerous. There seems to be a disposition, however, at the present time on the part of some health officers to get rid of some of their problems by transferring them to other civic departments. This has been done in some instances and with success, as for instance: Waterworks.-This is an engineering problem and it may be that the actual operation of such plants should be under the direction of some other department than the health department. But it is the health officer who is held responsible for the purity of the water supply of any community. Sewerage.-In most cities the engineering department is responsible for the cleansing, repairing, and operation of the sewers, but the health department should always exercise a certain amount of supervision over the sanitary condition of the sewers, and especially over the character of their effluent. The health officer will be held largely responsible for the pollution of streams and lakes. If the system of sewage disposal is a menace to the community it is the health department which should point this out and suggest the remedy. Scavenging.-In some cities the scavenging is done by some other department, but once the health officer allows this important work to be taken over by another department, the sanitary features of the work are apt to be neglected, unless the