The University of Iowa History of Medicine Society and Iowa Women’s Archives present Jennifer Gunn, History of Medicine Endowed Professor, Director of the Institute for Advanced Study, University of Minnesota. Dr. Gunn’s talk is titled “Injections, Itches, and Institutions: The Experience of Rural Medicine in Iowa, 1910-1950.”
Thursday, January 28
5:30pm-6:30pm
2117 Medical Education Research Facility (MERF)
Clara Skott was an Iowa farm wife living in South Dakota during the 1918 influenza pandemic. She received a series of injections to save off the flu. In 1918, the hypodermic needle was a symbol of modern medical practice.
Iowa doctors’ ledger books show hypos were a staple of their treatments. The records do not always indicate what was in the hypo. Clara was given a homegrown influenza vaccine. Some patients received barbiturates, vitamins, or placebos. $1.00 per injection was beyond the reach of many Iowans.
Gunn will explore county doctors’ practices and the range of ways rural Iowans handled health issues in the first half of the 20th century.
Parking? Use the Newton Road Ramp.
Cambus? Take Pentacrest Route Bus to MERF/Newton Road Ramp
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