T PROPOSE to cover a rather wider field than usual and to comment on the progress which has been made in preventive medicine. In reviewing the part played by public health authorities in the last 150 years, I have been impressed by their appreciation of the necessity for the isolation of infected persons, cleanliness, and the efficient disposal of infected material as the primary essentials to good health, although the methods, which were adopted by the early workers in this field, were based on studies of the spread of infection in the population without any precise knowledge as to their causation.When the Royal Sanitary Institute was founded 80 years ago, bacteriology was in its infancy, but in the period which has elapsed, tremendous progress has been made in the recognition and identification of organisms responsible for ill-health in man and animals. During the same period, the science of preventive medicine as we now know it has established for itself a permanent place in both the medical and veterinary fields, and the change of title of the Institute to that of the Royal Society of Health is an indication of the achievements which lie to its credit in the promotion of improved hygiene in all spheres of public health.In a conference of this kind supported by a number of professions, there is a unique opportunity for an exchange of ideas. In the past the subjects discussed at the meetings of this Section have often revolved around the inspection of meat and milk. It is obvious that this field, important though it is, is much too narrow, and it is fitting that in the light of the new and wider title of the parent body this Section should expand its fields of discussion bearing in mind that, whilst significant contributions have been made by the veterinary profession, other branches have been equally active. The time is long past when sections of public health, sanitary inspectors, veterinary hygiene and so on, should each put forward claims that they alone should be given the overriding responsibility for the control of public health in any particular field. Wright,i in his address to this Section, wisely remarked that: &dquo; We must ensure our actions are motivated by common interest. We must honour our respective professional interests but we must take care that sectional jealousies and mistrusts do not act as a brake to progress.&dquo; To-day we are to discuss the vital links between animal and human health and we hope that members of every professional calling will take part in the discussion..In the first place, 1 would like to refer to the general structure of public health which I would liken to the tripos with the medical officers of health, using the term in its widest sense, the sanitary inspectors and the veterinary officers constituting the three legs. Each has a vital contribution to make and by co-operation in a spirit of understanding and tolerance the platform of public health can be kept on a firm foundation. I shall review very briefly the progress which has been made in these fields during...
