British Society for the History of Medicine, Guildford Congress Report

British Society for the History of Medicine
Report of Guildford Congress 2011

The 24th Congress of the British Society for the History of Medicine was held at the University of Surrey, Guildford, from August 31st to September 3rd, 2011. It was organised by the BSHM in association with The Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of London (Faculty of the History and Philosophy of Medicine and Pharmacy),

Organisers from BSHM were Mrs Sue Weir (President of BSHM) and Dr Fiona Davidson (its secretary), with Captain Pete Starling organising the submission of abstracts. Professor Tilli Tansey and Dr Tina Matthews were also on the committee for selecting papers and Derwent Swaine was on the committee as Treasurer. Mrs Elizabeth Wood as Congress Administrator worked from the office of the Society of Apothecaries. We were able to give a donation to the organisations we visited, to the Army Services Medical Museum and to the Minimal Access Therapy Training Unit (MATTU) for their research.

Congress Report by David Hawgood

The University of Surrey on Stag Hill next to Guildford Cathedral is spread out in pleasant parkland with a lake and many mature trees. Its predecessor was Battersea College of Technology; it moved to Guildford in 1966.

We had the use of the lecture block, with poster displays, coffee, and buffet lunches in the large lobby. The accommodation block and the block with dining room for other meals, and bar, were nearby. The conference was well organised, and kept to time, with minor adjustments handled smoothly.

On the first afternoon there was a meeting of BSHM officers and representatives of affiliated societies. Reports from officers had mainly been circulated in advance. We heard details of the 2012 Poynter Lecture, and plans for the 2013 Congess to be held in Canterbury.

Next morning after a welcome from the President, the Congress was opened by the Rt Hon Baroness Virginia Bottomley of Nettlestone, a pro-chancellor of the university. She was Minister of Health from 1989 and Secretary of State for Health from 1992 to 1995. She drew on this experience of the National Health Service to give a very interesting opening address, highly relevant to the history of medicine, much more than just a welcome to the University.

On Thursday, Friday morning, and Saturday morning we had a programme of lectures, with sessions:

Apothecaries and Quacks
Military Medicine
Medicine and Madness
Museums and Archives
Modern Medical Advances
Free standing papers

There were three keynote lectures:

'The whole medical tribe': Jane Austen and the cultural history of health,
Michael Biddiss, Emeritus Professor of History, University of Reading.

The Philosophers' stone and the Manhattan project -- lessons in scientific realism
David Misselbrook, President Elect of the Faculty of the History and Philosophy of Medicine and Pharmacy, Worshipful Society of Apothecaries; Dean, Royal Society of Medicine.
we have an abstract of this lecture as Word document and pdf file.

To talk of modern medical advances: of shipyards, fireplaces and other things
Tilli Tansey, PhD., PhD., FMedSci., Hon.FRCP., Deputy President of the Faculty of the History and Philosophy of Medicine and Pharmacy, Worshipful Society of Apothecaries and Professor of the History of Modern Medical Sciences, School of History, Queen Mary University of London.
We have a Word document of an extended abstract of this lecture.

Most lectures (except the keynotes above) are listed in the Programme (pdf file). (Version of 11 Aug 2011 - it was modified slightly just before the Congress). And abstracts of them are available as Abstracts Word file and Abstracts pdf file.

I will just mention a few lectures that I particularly remember:
Martin Edwards on diagnostic tongue inspection, particularly as popularised by John Abernethy (1762-1831).
Peter Homan on the treatment of male-pattern baldness, from Hippocrates with pigeon droppings, Aristotle with goat's urine, on to flies, walnuts, onions, bear's grease and haemoglobin.
Natasha McEnroe on the Florence Nightingale Museum - considering in particular how to make the exhibits relevant to present-day professionals
Melanie Parker on the BDA Dental Museum - it happens that I had visited the museum on a "Marylebone Medical Walk" and welcomed this introduction to the collection started in 1919 by Lilian Lindsay, the first female qualified dentist.
Dr Fiona Subotsky on Camberwell House Asylum founded 1846 by Dr John Hayball Paul. It prospered and became one of the largest asylums run privately.
Sarah Louise Edwards on the effect of the contagious diseases act (1864) on the health of the navy in Plymouth - as measured by the rates of venereal diseases and the numbers of brothels and prostitutes.
Nigel Allan on "Surgeon, slaver or Scots scoundrel" from the journal of Alexander Horsburgh. In particular a journey from West Africa to buy slaves, then to the Caribbean to sell them and buy sugar. This was a financial disaster. But he regained his reputation by his subsequent medical work in Glasgow.

On the Friday afternoon we had two excellent visits. The first was to the Army Medical Services Museum at Keogh Barracks. Its curator Captain Pete Starling, one of the organisers of the Congress, introduced the museum and entertained us to tea.
This museum at Keogh Barracks, Mytchett near Aldershot, has collections of the Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC), Royal Army Veterinary Corps (RAVC), Royal Army Dental Corps (RADC) and Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps (QARANC. They are arranged together chronologically with reconstructions and objects in display cases from the civil war in the 17th Century up to the set-up for casualties in Afghanistan now. Outside is a collection of motor ambulances, some of them armoured.
For six photos taken on this visit see collection on Geograph. They include two motor ambulances, an ambulance train coach, a reconstruction of a WW1 horse-drawn ambulance with surgical facilities for both men and horses, and general views.

The second visit was to MATTU - Minimal Access Therapy Training Unit of the Postgraduate Medical School of the University of Surrey. Professor Michael Bailey FRCS introduced a programme which included videos of operations including a 3D video for which we were issued with polarising glasses and made a tour through the body of a patient via a probe inserted through a natural orifice. They had delayed a live operation to late afternoon so that we could view it by CCTV, with commentary from the surgeon in the operating theatre and interjections from Professor Bailey in our lecture theatre. Professor Bailey emphasised that use of these techniques meant a shorter stay in hospital and quicker recovery for the patient.

On the Friday evening a wine reception courtesy of the Wellcome Library was followed by a banquet dinner in the Oak Suite of the University.

Some posters were displayed throughout the Congress. Others were installed on the Saturday morning. An interesting collection - eleven from students. Six of the students received small grants from the John Blair Trust to cover their fee for attending the conference for a day. After the last lecture session, those presenting posters gave brief introductions to their posters. The student poster prize was awarded to David Annan, a second year medical student at Barts and The London School of Medicine, for a poster:
"TB- How our problems from the past can shape our prospects for the future".

The final session of the Congress was the biennial general meeting of BSHM. Dr Adrian Thomas became president for the next two years, succeeding Mrs Sue Weir.

Lecture block of the University of Surrey