LEPERS REGULATIONS *

LEPERS

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 45.01

LEPERS REGULATIONS *

27th June, 1939

GOVERNMENT NOTICE 285 of 1939, as amended by Government

Notice 174 of 1949 and Act LVIII of 1974.

The title of these Regulations is Lepers Regulations.

There shall be a medical officer in charge of each Leper

Hospital hereinafter referred to as the "hospital".

Each hospital shall consist of two divisions, male and

female. No communication shall be allowed between the patients of

either division, or with persons outside the hospital, except as is

permitted by these Regulations.

† There shall be an established diet for the patients which

may be altered or added to by the medical officer in charge of the

Hospital when the condition of any individual patient so requires.

Such alterations or additions shall be noted in the diet book of the

institution against the name of the patient concerned.

Patients detained in the hospital may have food provided

for them by the relatives and friends, but no articles of food or

drink shall be introduced if, in the opinion of the medical officer in

charge of the hospital, such articles are objectionable on grounds of

health or discipline.

Patients may use their own clothing, undergarments and

bed linen, provided that they have a quantity which, in the opinion

of the medical officer in charge of the hospital, is sufficient to

ensure proper cleanliness. Otherwise all articles of clothing and

bedding and all undergarments shall be supplied by the hospital.

The washing of all articles used in the hospital shall be

done in the hospital laundry. No article used by the patients shall be

taken out of the hospital.

All letters from patients shall be delivered to the medical

officer in charge of the hospital for disinfection before they are

despatched to their destination.

Patients may be visited by their relatives and friends on

such days and at such hours as may be fixed the Chief Government

Medical Officer, and under such conditions as the medical officer

in charge of the hospital shall consider necessary.

Patients who are dangerously ill may be seen by their

relatives or friends on any day and at any hours during the daytime,

on application to the medical officer in charge of the hospital.

*These Regulations have been repealed by Act XXVI of 2024.

†The original regulation 3 has been omitted, under the Statute Law Revision Act,

1980, in view of the fact that it referred to provisions contained in article 6 of the

Ordinance, which article has been repealed.

LEPERS

The Chief Government Medical Officer may grant

permission to patients to leave the hospital for temporary periods

under such conditions as he may consider necessary to impose in

each case.

The Leprosy Board shall visit the hospital every twelve

months to examine patients and attend to other professional matters

with the medical officer in charge.

The medical officer in charge of the hospital shall inform

the Leprosy Board of the case of any patient whose condition has,

in his opinion, improved to an extent that might justify his

conditional discharge from the hospital. The Board shall examine

the patient and submit a report to the Chief Government Medical

Officer on the state of the disease in the patient and shall make such

recommendations as it may think fit relative to the patient’s

conditional discharge from the hospital.

All patients discharged shall conform to the following

conditions

(a) they shall inform the Chief Government Medical

Officer through the medical officer in charge of the

hospital of the address at which they intend to reside

on discharge and of any subsequent change of address;

(b) they shall present themselves to the Leprosy Board for

examination once every six months, or more often if so

required by the Board;

(c) they shall not engage in any trade, business,

occupation or work of the following nature -

(i)

any trade or business connected with the supply,

preparation or distribution of food, drink, drugs,

medicine or tobacco in any form;

(ii) laundry work;

(iii) tailoring;

(iv) domestic service;

(v) nursing;

(vi) midwifery;

(vii) hairdressing;

(viii) itinerant hawking;

Patients who are not removed to, but are to be treated out

of the hospital shall present themselves for treatment at such place

and time as may be ordered by the Chief Government Medical

Officer. All such patients shall present themselves to the Leprosy

Board for examination once every six months, or more often if so

required by the Board. Nursing mothers shall not be allowed to

nurse their babies.

In the event of any person who has been conditionally

discharged from the hospital developing contagious manifestations

of leprosy, the Board, through the Chief Government Medical

Officer, shall inform the President of Malta who may revoke the

order for the conditional discharge of any such person and order his

removal to the hospital. In the event of any patient undergoing

LEPERS

treatment out of the hospital developing contagious manifestations

of leprosy, the medial officer in charge of the hospital or any other

medical practitioner who becomes cognisant of the fact shall at

once inform the Leprosy Board, and the Board, after examination

of the patient, shall through the Chief Government Medical Officer

inform the President of Malta, who may order the removal of the

patient to the hospital.

Patients who, in the opinion of the medical officer in

charge, are able to contribute some assistance to the service of the

hospital or to perform agricultural, needle or other work, may be so

employed in return for extra comforts or a small monthly gratuity

to be fixed by the Chief Government Medical Officer.

The members of a household where a case of leprosy has

occurred may be subjected from time to time to medical

examination.

Any patient who contravenes these Regulations or the rules

of the hospital; or who disobeys the orders of the medical officer in

charge of the hospital; or who creates any disturbance; or who uses

obscene or profane language; or who insults, or reviles, by word or

deed, an officer or servant of the hospital or another patient; or who

commits any nuisance in any part of the hospital; or who damages

or destroys government property or articles belonging to other

patients, shall be liable to any or all of the following punishments

as may be decided by the Chief Government Medical Officer

(a) suspensions of leave of absence;

(b) stoppage of the allowance of money for tobacco, or

stoppage of wine, dessert or any other article of food;

(c) deprivation of a drive in the country.

The period of any of the above punishments shall no,t in any case,

exceed one month. More serious offences shall be dealt with

according to law.