The Public Health (Infectious Diseases) Regulations 1988

Interpretation

2.—(1) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—

“the Act” means the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984;

“appropriate District Health Authority” means the District Health Authority within which a district of a local authority(1) or a port health district is wholly or partly situated;

“appropriate medical officer” means—

(a)

in a case where the District Health Authority has appointed a Director of Public Health, the Director of Public Health, and

(b)

in any other case, the registered medical practitioner designated by the District Health Authority for the purposes of these Regulations;

“District Health Authority” means a District Health Authority established under section 8(1) of the National Health Service Act 1977(2);

“certificate” means a certificate required by section 11 of the Act to be sent by a registered medical practitioner to a proper officer(3);

“Chief Medical Officer for England” means the Chief Medical Officer to the Department of Health;

“Chief Medical Officer for Wales” means the Chief Medical Officer to the Welsh Office;

“International Health Regulations” means the International Health Regulations (1969) as adopted by the World Health Assembly on 25th July 1969 and as amended by the 26th World Health Assembly in 1973 and by the 34th World Health Assembly in 1981(4);

“ophthalmia neonatorum” means a purulent discharge from the eyes of an infant, commencing within 21 days from the date of birth;

“port health authority” means a port health authority constituted by an ordermade, or having effect as if made, by the Secretary of State under section 2 of the Act, and includes the port health authority for the Port of London as constituted under section 7 of the Act;

“port health district” means the district of a port health authority;

“viral haemorrhagic fever” means Argentine haemorrhagic fever (Junin), Bolivian haemorrhagic fever (Machupo), Chikungunya haemorrhagic fever, Congo/Crimean haemorrhagic fever, Dengue fever, Ebola virus disease, haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (Hantaan), Kyasanur forest disease, Lassa fever, Marburg disease, Omsk haemorrhagic fever and Rift Valley disease.

(2) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—

(a) any reference to a numbered regulation or Schedule is a reference to the regulation or Schedule bearing that number in these Regulations and any reference in a regulation to a numbered paragraph is to the paragraph of that regulation bearing that number; and

(b) any reference to the district or port health district of a proper officer means the district of the local authority or port health authority, as the case may be, of which he is the proper officer.

(1)

See the definition of “local authority” in section 1(2) of the Act and the definition of “district” in section 74 of the Act.

(2)

1977 c. 49; section 8(1) was substituted by the Health Services Act 1980 (c. 53), section 1(7) and Schedule 1, paragraph 28(a).

(3)

See the definition of “proper officer” in section 74 of the Act.

(4)

The International Health Regulations (1969) are published by the World Health Organisation and are available from Her Majesty’s Stationery Office.