GARGANTUAN steps
Saturday, June 15, 2013
the medical detective
'The Medical Detective' details the exploits of John Snow, a modest physician of the late 19th century considered by many to be the father of modern epidemiology, and his conquest of the cholera epidemic in London and England. The word cholera means 'bile' in Greek, though how it came about, I'm not entirely sure. Just for some enlightenment - England (and the rest of Europe) was afflicted with multiple cholera epidemics in the 19th century and back then, the medical opinion of its spread was that of a miasma, or 'bad air'. All concoctions of remedies were administered by quacks and doctors alike, rendering the victims' deaths even more inevitable. Meanwhile, John Snow vigilantly studied the disease and came to the conclusion that cholera was spread via contaminated water. This was proven beyond doubt in his investigations in the cholera epidemic surrounding the Broad Street pump. In 1854, Soho, London, was hit by a massive cholera outbreak, where nearly 600 people perished. John Snow mapped the disease origin to a pump on Broad Street and had its handle removed - the deaths from cholera in the vicinity subsequently came to a halt. In his lifetime though, John Snow was never fully recognised for his impact on the disease and his handiwork was only fully appreciated after his passing. Meanwhile, his achievements are commemorated by a pub, unceremoniously named the 'John Snow Pub', and a pump with no handle along the newly named Broadwick Street. Wish I had paid a visit when I was still in London! Guess I will when I'm there next.
John Snow's mapping of those deceased from the disease and linking it to the Broad Street pump
You and I may not live to see the day, and my name may be forgotten when it comes,
but the time will arrive when great outbreaks of cholera will be things of the
past; and it is the knowledge of the way in which the disease is propagated
which will cause them to disappear.
- John Snow
