As is ever the case, I found these images on the IWM site while actually looking for something else.
They just seemed to have a little relevance today given the frothing of the anti-vaxxer minority.
Apparently, Dr. Fauci has claimed he went to the North Pole personally to vaccinate Santa Claus against COVID-19. I don’t know whether Santa received immunization against diphtheria in the 1940s.
In 1940, diphtheria became the first vaccine to be offered free to British children on a national scale. It reduced the caseload from over 46,000 in 1940 to just 962 in 1950, and deaths from 2,480 to 49.
Seven-year-old Ronald Ford seems to have been activated by his injection. Here he is climbing the railings, which doesn’t actually look very comfortable. But soldier on and stay cheerful.
There’s something about all this activity that reminds me of the Tampax ads from fifty years ago.
You know the kind of thing: Buy Tampax and you get to do all these glamorous and expensive sports like horseback riding, ski-ing, scuba-diving.
And here’s a classmate happily playing with her hoop after the big moment.
And here’s another Before and After: Doris Thurston aged 2 is not certain about that needle.
And here she is back in the 1940’s house.
All photographs were made by the Ministry of Information as part of a health campaign to get all children immunized.
The historical context you provided about the diphtheria vaccine is intriguing. It’s amazing to see how far we’ve come in terms of vaccination efforts. The drastic reduction in cases and deaths due to the diphtheria vaccine showcases the true power of immunization in safeguarding public health.
Yes, history is helpful in identifying both medical miracles and medical malpractices.
And many seem to have collectively chosen to swap the history of vaccination for the conspiracy theories of the paranoid and ill-intentioned. Thanks for the comment.
Why do you think there was a need for pictures of happy kids after receiving their vaccines as far back as the 1940’s? It seems like vaccines were new enough at that time that most parents would just trust what the doctors said instead of being suspicious of them.
This kind of messaging, wherein those providing the treatment lead out with a “we promise this won’t hurt you” argument, reminds me of the line from Shakespeare’s Hamlet: “The lady doth protest too much, methinks”
Why was there such suspicion that there needed to be a public relations campaign?
I dunno Richard. Fear of the unknown maybe? That particular vaccine save countless lives and removed a childhood scourge.
Thanks for writing such an informative article. I just feel sleepy for 40-50 minutes after getting vaccinated.
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Useful read for everyone. Everyone should get the vaccine and get tested if they show any symptoms of COVID-19. In miami http://www.covidtestingmia.com is one of the best facilities to get your test done. I would surely recommend!
Of course, everyone should get the vaccination as soon as they can. It’s the only way to stop the damn thing in its tracks. And those who don’t get vaccinated by choice are selfish and/or ignorant and delusional.
Must say I have been disappointed in the effects though. So far I have not been able to monitor police scanners nor have I been beamed up to the great mothership that controls the world. I’m wondering whether I got the real thing – especially since I experienced no ill effects.
This was so nice! I think PR wings of all the world governments even UNO must up the ante now and create such marketing campaigns to encourage people to get them vaccinated.
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And then there’s the issue of getting the vaccine to everywhere in the world. And as for the anti-vaxxers – they need to be kept away from the rest of us.
Such an important story for people who aren’t sure if the vaccine isn’t a good idea, and great pictures you’ve found there! It’s worth overcoming a phobia of needles and injections to avoid the longer term risk of catching Covid or one of its new flavours.
I despair of the flat-earthers who call themselves anti-vaxxers: what they need is a strong dose of social history to get themselves inoculated against true fake news (yes, I know that’s contradictory, but we have to somehow distinguish what’s falsely claimed as ‘fake news’ by Trumpers and their ilk).
There’s so much uninformed hysteria about vaccination ‘causing autism’ and the like, but I wonder how many of these rabid fanatics — I use the term ‘rabid’ advisedly — would be here if their parents and grandparents hadn’t been treated for killers like diphtheria, polio and rubella?
Agreed. They are a danger to others and to themselves. And some of them can sound quite rational. But of course, they are not.
Great post! This brings back memories! I can’t wait for this latest jab, although I will still close my eyes!
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I still have the small pox inoculation scar on my thigh which my grandchildren cannot understand. I remember the excitement of the whole family piling in the car to go to the local high school for the polio vaccine. Some people today seem to have no understanding of the scourges of the very recent past.
Such an interesting post, and the photographs are so redolent of my childhood in south London.
Vaccine good. We all were scared of the TB jab which we had to have aged about 11…it left a ring of punch marks but actually did not hurt as predicted…and saved us all. It’s a long time since a countrywide need for a vaccine but as you show, nothing new . Our topsy turvy government used to peddling sound bite PR is driving people here up the wall…not drainpipes…as yet…tho who would know for sure..??
And – of course – as you may imagine – I did not receive any of these vaccinations and modern medical miracles. Cod liver oil, yeast tablets and vegetarian diet yes. But no protection against smallpox, TB and polio and all the rest of the scourges. Anti-vaxxers have been around a long time and sometimes they are even in your own family! Did you get a flu shot btw?
Yes had mine this September
These are wonderful — and resonant — photographs. Thank you for sharing them along with your references to various diseases (and vaccinations for same). I was excited to learn that my mother, who is currently in a retirement community, is scheduled to be vaccinated against Covid-19 next week. I am looking forward to getting whichever version is available soonest (we have Pfizer and Moderna approved so far in the USA). Public health is a fascinating subject — and is loaded with controversy here in the USA where we still appear to have a very individualistic — leftover from the frontier days when European settlers continually stole land from our indigenous residents? — streak. I truly hope that enough of us will be able to transcend this “I-me-mine” mindset and become well-informed adults who respect the health of all…
And of course there was TB still quite common in the rural community I was born into in 1950 …
And scarlet fever. And never forget polio. That was the big scare of my childhood.
I love these old photographs you have found!