Monthly Archives: October 2018

Seminars in the History of Science, Medicine and Technology- Week 4, 29th October

‘In the Cold War, East Asian nations became involved in a variety of transnational health initiatives. Although Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan all provided support to the World Health Organization and its American-oriented interventions and strategies, the non-aligned People’s Republic of China followed a different path. The public success of mass immunization in China, as determined by the eradication of smallpox and the “control” of other infectious diseases like measles and cholera in the 1950s and 1960s, contributed crucial evidence for the success of Chinese public health more broadly. By the 1970s, immunization was comfortably entrenched in the rural health system that the People’s Republic of China promoted on a global scale via the export of medical materials, personnel, and funds. State agents also cultivated the goodwill of Western observers who traveled to China after 1971. These international activities contributed to the prominence of the PRC in discussions of global health policy, culminating in the World Health Organization’s Alma-Ata Declaration of 1978 and its major policy shift towards promoting primary health care: interventions meant to provide basic clinical services for many people, including those in rural areas. Although the PRC became famous for its “barefoot doctors” as the human faces of the rural health system it promoted, its eradication and control of infectious diseases—a consequence of mass immunization—provided key evidence that helped consolidate its position as a leading national model of public health.’

When? Monday 29th October 2018, 16:00. Coffee will be available from 15:30.

Where? Lecture Theatre, History Faculty, George Street, Oxford OX1 2RL

All welcome to attend! This term’s HSMT Seminar series is convened by Professor Rob Iliffe and Dr Sloan Mahone, Oxford Centre for the History of Science, Medicine and Technology. More information about HSMT events can be found here.

Opening Hours w/b 29th October

Our Week 4 opening hours will be as follows:

Monday & Tuesday: 2.15pm-5pm
Wednesday
: 2pm-4.30pm
Thursday: CLOSED
Friday: 2.15pm-5pm

Whilst the library is closed on Thursday, staff will be at the History Graduate Research Fair! If you are a new Oxford graduate student, do come along! 2-4pm, Exam Schools

Our collections covering the history of medicine are available to search on SOLO. If you are new to the library and would like to pay us a visit, please contact us in advance to arrange an appointment.

Have a spooky weekend!

‘Eight different specimen of bats shown with spread and folded wings. Coloured etching by S. Milne.’ . Credit: Wellcome Collection. CC BY

Seminars in the History of Science, Medicine and Technology- Week 3, 22nd October

Dr Marissa Mika (UCL): Archival ethics from below: the case of an African Cancer Hospital

‘At the Uganda Cancer Institute, lines often blur between past and present, sickness and health, life and death. Founded in 1967 as a small chemotherapy clinical trials facility in Kampala, today the Institute’s 60 beds serve a population catchment of over 40 million living in the Great Lakes region of Africa. The Institute houses the only continuous collection of patient records documenting cancer treatment and care on the African continent. This talk considers the temporal, methodological, and ethical challenges of preserving patient records at the Uganda Cancer Institute.’

When? Monday 22nd October 2018, 16:00. Coffee will be available from 15:30.

Where? Lecture Theatre, History Faculty, George Street, Oxford OX1 2RL

All welcome to attend! This term’s HSMT Seminar series is convened by Professor Rob Iliffe and Dr Sloan Mahone, Oxford Centre for the History of Science, Medicine and Technology. More information about HSMT events can be found here.

 

Opening Hours w/b 22nd October

In Week 3, we will have slightly revised opening hours, as follows:

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday: 2.15pm-5pm

Our collections covering the history of medicine are available to search on SOLO. If you have not been to the library before and would like to pay us a visit, please contact us in advance by email or phone.

Have a lovely weekend!

A convalescing old lady asking her health visitor if she has recovered from her bout of flu. Wood engraving by Leonard Raven-Hill, in issue of ‘Punch, Or the London Charivari’, 8th May 1912. Credit: Wellcome Collection. CC BY

Opening Hours w/b 15th October

In Week 2 our usual opening hours will apply, as follows:

Monday & Tuesday: 2.15pm-5pm
Wednesday: 2pm-4.30pm
Thursday & Friday: 2.15pm-5pm

Our collections covering the history of medicine are available to search on SOLO. If you are new to the library and would like to visit, please contact us in advance to arrange an appointment.

Have a great weekend!

Colour lithograph after H.M. Bateman, ca. 1950. Credit: Wellcome Collection. CC BY

Opening Hours w/b 8th October

The first week of term is approaching, and the Wellcome Unit Library is available for all of your History of Medicine needs!

Our opening hours for Week 1 are as follows:

Monday & Tuesday: 2.15pm-5pm
Wednesday: 2pm-4.30pm
Thursday & Friday: 2.15pm-5pm

Our collections are available to search on SOLO. If you would like to consult anything in the library, do contact us in advance by phone or email to arrange your visit.

Dr Williams’ ‘Pink Pills’ were advertised as an iron rich tonic for the blood and nerves to treat anaemia, clinical depression, poor appetite and lack of energy. The tablets were originally advertised as “Pink Pills for Pale People”. Users of the product claimed the pills could even cure paralysis. The patent for the pills was bought by an American politician, Senator George T Fulford (1852-1905) in 1890. Fulford made the product an international success. Credit: Science Museum, London. CC BY