unit 12 p2
P2-Provide a concise historical account covering the 19th,20th and 21st centuries, describing the origins of public health in the UK and showing your knowledge of key people, reports/papers and laws.
19TH Century:
John Snow (1813-1858)
John Snow was the ‘Founding Father’ of public health. He succeeded Edwin Chadwick in his role in public health administration. He is also considered one of the founders of modern epidemiology for his work in identifying the source of a cholera outbreak in 1854. Snow was fascinated in the role of drinking water in the spread of cholera and had observed that people who had drunk water by the company were more likely to contract the disease than those who had not.
Edwin Chadwick (1800-1890)
Edwin Chadwick was an English social reformer, noted for his work to reform the Poor Laws and improve sanitary conditions and public health. Edwin Chadwick used his position to persuade the government to invest in public health ventures and Chadwick must be credited with being Britain’s premier pioneer in public health reform. Money spent on improving public health was therefore cost effective, as it would save money in the long term.
Poor Law Act (1834)
In 1834 the Poor Law Amendment Act was passed by Parliament. This was designed to reduce the cost of looking after the poor as it stopped money going to poor people except in exceptional circumstances. If people wanted help they had to go into a workhouse to get it. The poor were given clothes and food in the workhouse in exchange for several hours of manual labour each day. Families were split up inside the workhouse. Individuals had to wear a type of uniform, follow strict rules and were on a bad diet of bread and watery soup. Conditions were made so terrible that only those people who desperately needed help would go there. People like Richard Oastler (a political campaigner) wrote pamphlets and letters to newspapers describing the Poor Law Amendment Act as cruel.
The First Public
19TH Century:
John Snow (1813-1858)
John Snow was the ‘Founding Father’ of public health. He succeeded Edwin Chadwick in his role in public health administration. He is also considered one of the founders of modern epidemiology for his work in identifying the source of a cholera outbreak in 1854. Snow was fascinated in the role of drinking water in the spread of cholera and had observed that people who had drunk water by the company were more likely to contract the disease than those who had not.
Edwin Chadwick (1800-1890)
Edwin Chadwick was an English social reformer, noted for his work to reform the Poor Laws and improve sanitary conditions and public health. Edwin Chadwick used his position to persuade the government to invest in public health ventures and Chadwick must be credited with being Britain’s premier pioneer in public health reform. Money spent on improving public health was therefore cost effective, as it would save money in the long term.
Poor Law Act (1834)
In 1834 the Poor Law Amendment Act was passed by Parliament. This was designed to reduce the cost of looking after the poor as it stopped money going to poor people except in exceptional circumstances. If people wanted help they had to go into a workhouse to get it. The poor were given clothes and food in the workhouse in exchange for several hours of manual labour each day. Families were split up inside the workhouse. Individuals had to wear a type of uniform, follow strict rules and were on a bad diet of bread and watery soup. Conditions were made so terrible that only those people who desperately needed help would go there. People like Richard Oastler (a political campaigner) wrote pamphlets and letters to newspapers describing the Poor Law Amendment Act as cruel.
The First Public