Is Mary Seacole the new mother of nursing?
Mariella Scerri Mellieha, Malta Sketch of Mary Seacole by Crimean war artist William Simpson (1823–1899), c. 1855. Source. The promotion of Jamaican businesswoman and “doctress” Mary Seacole as the pioneer nurse in place of Florence Nightingale was given considerable credence early in 2013, when Seacole was named a “pioneer of health care” by the UK Department […]
Political obfuscation and medical speculation
Charles G. Kels San Antonio, Texas, United States Grover Cleveland, 22nd (1885-1889) and 24th President (1893-1897) of the United States, with trademark mustache intact. He is the only US president to serve non-consecutive terms. National Archives, Washington, D.C., USA. Public domain. Politicians have long endeavored to keep their health concerns secret. In US presidential […]
In the heart of Damascus
Kera Panni Seaside, California, United States Propaganda in support of President Bashar al-Assad between the Citadel of Damascus and the entrance to the suq, (May 2007). Personal archives, photo taken by author Even as a child in the American suburbs, I knew my blood flowed from Syria. Relatives said my Jiddoo’s parents were farmers […]
Ambroise Pare: standard bearer for barber-surgery reform
Mildred Wilson Detroit, MI Ambroise Pare, Posthumous, Fantasy Portrait by William Holl. Public Domain “There are five duties of surgery: to remove what is superfluous, to restore what has been dislocated, to separate what has grown together, to reunite what has been divided, and to redress the defects of nature.” -Ambroise Pare1 For centuries, […]
The gift of life—from whom?
George M. Pantalos Louisville, Kentucky, United States Students at the “Banned Blood” display outside the University of Louisville Red Barn, where a Red Cross blood drive was being held on campus in 2011. The student’s goal was to raise awareness about the FDA lifetime deferral from blood donation of all men who have sex […]
The history of the Red Cross / Red Crescent in blood
GAP Secretariat Perth, WA, Australia It has been almost one hundred years since the first Red Cross / Red Crescent (RC/RC) blood transfusion service was established by the British Red Cross in 1921. Today, more than 80% of all Red Cross / Crescent National Societies are operating a blood program as a core health […]
Blood debt
Jules Reich Chicago, Illinois, United States A patient donating blood, Australia, c. late 1940s. Source: Wikimedia commons In 1937, the first U.S. blood bank opened in Chicago. It was originally called a Blood Preservation Laboratory, but its founder, Dr. Bernard Fantus, changed the name to blood bank. For someone who spent a large part […]
Blood type and personality
Nonoko Kamai Nagoya, Japan ICS code block for blood bag identification (sample). Photo by ICS International GmbH. 2013. Accessed via Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 3.0. Why do Japanese people believe in a relationship between blood type and personality? Beginning in the 1970s, the blood type personality hypothesis became fashionable in Japan and it is […]
Bloody segregation: the story of how Charles Richard Drew found life abundantly
Amy DeMatt Greensburg, Pennsylvania, United States Charles R. Drew, “Father of the Blood Bank,” as depicted by Betsy Graves Reyneau. The portrait hangs at the National Portrait Gallery, and, as described by the Gallery, serves as a “visual rebuttal to racism.” Source: Wikimedia Commons. Portrait of Charles R. Drew, painted by Betsy Graves Reyneau, […]
Blood beliefs and practices in Iran
Bahar Dowlatshahi Tehrann, Iran Circulation of the blood (human). Wellcome Collection. CC BY Blood is believed to have special abilities and properties in many eastern countries such as Iran. Even human personality traits, emotions, and relationships are referred to with blood. Angry people boil their blood; those who are kind and loving are called warm-blooded. […]