PDT-TchGN-67 - Examining American History Through a Medical Lens: The Intersection of Health, Equality, and Law

Course Description

NEW! Today, perhaps more than ever, it is clear that medicine and health do not exist in a black box.  What happens in the lab, in the hospital, or in the exam room is influenced by trends in society and culture, as well as by history. The reverse happens, too. For example, long after scientists warned about the dangers of smoking, some people still courted lung disease in their efforts to be cool. Or, in the 19th century, beliefs that extreme physical activity would inhibit women’s reproductive health shaped school curriculum for girls in some schools. 

As a result of this interaction between medicine and wider society, topics and issues in the history of medicine can be used to enhance courses on American history or to enrich specific modules, such as ones about the history of immigration; gender equality; and the crossroads of legal, governmental, and personal authority.

In this workshop, we will look at the history of four topics such as

• smallpox epidemics and vaccines,
• the Influenza Pandemic of 1918,
• Typhoid Mary, and
• Carrie Buck of Buck v. Bell

In the history of American medicine and their interactions with society, culture, and the law.