An Act for the Prevention of Contagious Diseases-

ASSENTED TO 5TH FEBRUARY, 1868.

WHEREAS it is expedient to make provision for the prevention of certain contagious diseases within the Colony of Queensland Be it therefore enacted by the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and Legislative Assembly of Queensland in Parliament assembled and by the authority of the same as follows-

1. It shall be lawful for the Governor by and with the advice of the Executive Council from time to time by proclamation published in the Government Gazette to specify the towns townships or other places which shall come under the provisions of this Act.

2. The Governor by and with the advice of the Executive Council shall from time to time after the commencement of this Act appoint a medical officer for each of the towns townships or other places as aforesaid to which this Act applies to be during pleasure visiting surgeon for the purposes of this Act.

3. Where an information on oath may be laid before any justice of the peace by an inspector or other officer of police charging to the effect that a female therein named is a common prostitute and being resident within the limits of any place to which this Act shall apply has been within fourteen days before the laying of the said information within such limits as aforesaid for the purpose of prostitution such justice may if he shall think fit issue a notice in the form of schedule B of this Act addressed to such female which notice shall be duly served on her and if such female shall in pursuance of such notice appear before the said or any other justice of the peace either by herself or by some person on her behalf or if in case of her non-appearance it shall be shown on oath that the notice was duly served on her within a reasonable time before the time appointed in such notice it shall be lawful for such justice on oath made before him substantiating the matter of the information to order that such female be subjected to a medical examination by the visiting surgeon duly appointed as hereinbefore provided for the purpose of ascertaining at the time of such examination whether she is affected with a contagious disease and such female may be at the discretion of the said justice of the peace subjected to a periodical medical examination by the said visiting surgeon for any period not exceeding one year and the order shall be a sufficient warrant for the visiting surgeon to conduct such examinations accordingly and shall specify the time and place at which the female shall attend for the said examination and a copy of the said order shall be served on the said female.

4. If any female in any place to which this Act applies shall voluntarily by a submission in writing signed by her in the presence of the said inspector or other chief officer of police desire to submit to a periodical medical examination the justice of the peace to whom the said submission may be made may at his discretion order a periodical examination of such female as hereinbefore provided for any period not exceeding one year.

5. The Governor in Council shall from time to time make regulation respecting the times and places of medical examinations under this Act and a copy of all such regulations shall be sent to each clerk of petty sessions the chief medical officer of any hospital in any town township or other place to which this Act shall apply and to every visiting surgeon under this Act.

6. The visiting surgeon having regard to the regulations aforesaid and to the circumstances of each case shall at the first examination of each female examined by him and afterwards from time to time as occasion requires prescribe the times and places at which she is required again to attend for examination and he shall from time to time give or cause to be given to each such female notice in writing of the times and places so prescribed.

7. If on any such examination the female examined is found to be affected with a contagious disease the visiting surgeon shall sign a certificate accordingly naming the hospital in which she is to be placed and he shall sign that certificate in duplicate and shall cause one of the originals to be delivered to the female and one to the chief officer of police of the town township or other place in which the said female shall reside.

8. Any female to whom any such certificate of the visiting surgeon relates may if she thinks fit proceed to the hospital named in that certificate and place herself there for medical treatment but if after the certificate shall have been delivered to her she shall neglect or refuse to do so any constable acting under the orders of the said chief officer of police may apprehend her and convey her with all practicable speed to that hospital and place her there for medical treatment and the certificate of the visiting surgeon shall be sufficient authority for his so doing.

9. Any female Certified by the visiting surgeon to be affected by a contagious disease placing herself or being placed as aforesaid in any hospital for medical treatment shall be detained there for that purpose by the chief medical officer of such hospital until discharged by him in writing under his hand and the certificate of the visiting surgeon duly signed and delivered as hereinbefore mentioned shall be sufficient authority for such detention.

10. No female shall be detained for a longer period than three months unless the chief medical officer of the hospital in which she shall be detained and the visiting surgeon of the place whence she came or was brought conjointly certify that her further detention for medical treatment is requisite which certificate shall be in duplicate and one of the originals shall be delivered to such female and in that case she may be further detained for any period not exceeding three months.

11. If any female detained in any hospital shall consider herself entitled to be discharged therefrom and the chief medical officer of the hospital refuses to discharge her such female shall at her request be conveyed before a justice who if he is satisfied upon reasonable evidence that she is free from a contagious disease shall discharge her from such hospital and such order of discharge shall have the same effect as the discharge of the chief medical officer as hereinbefore provided.

12. If any female subjected by order of a justice under this Act to periodical medical examination at any time absents herself in order to avoid submitting herself to such examination on any occasion on which she ought so to submit herself or refuses or wilfully neglects to submit herself to such examination on any such occasion or if any female authorised by this Act to be detained in any hospital under medical treatment for a contagious disease quits the hospital without being discharged therefrom by the chief medical officer thereof by writing under his hand then and in every such case such female shall be guilty of an offence under this Act and on summary conviction before any two justices of the peace shall be liable to imprisonment in the case of a first offence for any term not exceeding one month and in the case of a second or any subsequent offence for any term not exceeding three months and in the case of quitting the hospital without being discharged as aforesaid the female may be taken into custody without warrant by any constable.

13. In the case of any female being convicted of and imprisoned for the offence of absenting herself or refusing or neglecting to submit herself to examination as aforesaid the order subjecting her to periodical medical examination shall be in force after and notwithstanding her imprisonment unless the surgeon of the gaol in which she shall have been imprisoned as aforesaid and the visiting surgeon appointed under this Act at the time of her discharge from imprisonment shall certify in writing that she is free from a contagious disease.

14. In the case of any female being convicted of and imprisoned for the offence of quitting a hospital without being discharged the certificate of the visiting surgeon under which she was detained in the hospital shall continue in force during the term of such imprisonment and on the expiration of such term she shall be sent back to the hospital and shall be detained there under that certificate as if it were given on the day of the expiration of her term of imprisonment unless the surgeon of the prison and the visiting surgeon to be appointed under this Act at the time of her discharge from imprisonment certify that she was free from a contagious disease.

15. If on any female, leaving any hospital a notice in writing is given her by the chief medical officer of the said hospital to the effect that she is still affected by a contagious disease and she is afterwards in any a prostitute place for the purpose of prostitution without having previously received from the visiting surgeon appointed under this Act a certificate of her freedom from contagious disease she shall be guilty of an offence under this Act and on summary conviction before two justices shall be liable to be imprisoned in the case of a first offence for any term not exceeding one month and in the case of a second or any subsequent offence for any term not exceeding three months.

16. Every order under this Act subjecting a female to periodical whenever female is medical examination shall be in operation and full force in manner in this Act provided so long as and whenever from time to time the female to whom it relates shall be resident within the limits of any place to which this Act applies but not in any case for a period of longer than one year and where the chief medical officer of any hospital and the visiting surgeon on the discharge by them of any female from any hospital certify that she is free from a contagious disease the order subjecting her to periodical medical examination shall after the giving of such certificate no longer be in force.

17. If any female subjected to a periodical medical examination under this Act either on her own submission or under the order of a justice desiring to be relieved therefrom and not being under detention in hospital shall make application in writing to a justice of the peace such justice shall appoint by notice in writing a time and place for the hearing of the application and shall cause the notice to be delivered to the applicant and a copy of the application and of the notice to be delivered to the chief officer of police for the town township or other place in which such female may reside.

18. If on the hearing of the application it is shown to the satisfaction of such or any other justice of the peace that the applicant has ceased to be a common prostitute or if the applicant with the approval of the justice enters into a recognizance with or without sureties as to the said justice may seem meet for her good behavior during three months thereafter the justice shall order that she be relieved from periodical medical examination.

19. Every such recognizance shall be deemed to be forfeited if at any time during the term for which it is entered into the female to whom it relates is (within the limits of any place to which this Act applies) in any public thoroughfare street or place for the purpose of prostitution or otherwise (within these limits) conducts herself as a common prostitute.

20. If any person being the owner or occupier of any house room Or place within the limits of any place to which this Act applies or being a manager or assistant in the management thereof having reasonable cause to believe any woman to be a common prostitute and to be affected with a contagious disease induces or suffers her to resort to or be in that house or room or place for the purpose of prostitution he shall be guilty of an offence under this Act and on a summary conviction thereof before any two justices shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds or at the discretion of such justices to be imprisoned for any term not exceeding six months with or without hard labor Provided that any conviction under this Act shall not exempt the offender from any penal or other consequences to which he may be liable for keeping or being concerned in keeping a bawdy house or disorderly house or for the nuisance thereby occasioned.

21. In any case that may be heard under this Act respecting any female as aforesaid unless such female shall otherwise desire the justice may in his discretion order that no person have access to or be or remain in any court or room where such inquiry may be held without his consent or permission.

22. The term contagious disease shall be held to mean any sort of venereal disease including gonorrhoea.

23. This Act shall commence from and immediately after the first day of March one thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight.

24. This Act shall be styled and may be cited as the " Act for the Prevention of Contagious Diseases of 1868."

This Act was published in The Queensland Government Gazette Vol9, 1868