In the week of the “International Day of Radiology” and “World Radiography Day” (8 November) and the International Day of Medical Physics (7 November) the BIR launches a short film to commemorate the centenary year of the start of WW1.
“Radiology and WW1: Objects and People” is launched in the week which celebrates the professions of medical physics, radiology, and radiography and, appropriately, as we approach Armistice Day on 11 November.
In this short film, Professor Andrew Jones, immediate past president of the BIR, is in conversation with Dr Adrian Thomas, BIR honorary librarian and radiology historian, about the role of radiology on the Great War battlefields.
The conversation centres on key people of the time, including women scientists, Marie Curie and Edith Stoney, and radiologist, Florence Stoney. It also features objects such as an original X-ray “Coolidge” tube, original X-rays of injuries, equipment used at the time, journal articles and a watch with a fascinating connection to the history of radiation protection.
Jacqueline Fowler, Chief Executive said “We are proud to launch this excellent film which highlights radiology’s contribution to World War I. Dr Adrian Thomas is a renowned specialist on this topic and we would like to thank him for his expertise and generosity in supporting this venture to commemorate the International Day of Radiology and World Radiography Day.”
Dr Thomas was a founding member of what is now the British Society for the History of Radiology. In 1995 he organised the radiology history exhibition for the Röntgen Centenary Congress and edited his first book on radiology history. He has published extensively on radiology history and has actively promoted radiology history throughout his career. He is currently the Chairman of the International Society for the History of Radiology. Dr Thomas believes it is important that radiology is represented in the wider medical history community and to that end lectures on radiology history in the Diploma of the History of Medicine of the Society Apothecaries (DHMSA). He is the immediate past-president of the British Society for the History of Medicine, and the UK national representative to the International Society for the History of Medicine.
View the film here http://www.bir.org.uk/about-us/history/radiology-and-wwi/
