History of Medicine Poster Competition
Because the field of applicants for this year's RCPI History of Medicine Research Award was so strong, and as we were limited to only having time for four people to present on the day, we asked some of the other applicants if they would be willing to submit their research in poster form to be displayed on the day. For those of you who couldn't make the event in October, here are the four posters.
Visions of Birth. Invention and innovation in eighteenth and nineteenth century Irish obstetric practice - Martina Hynan
Martina is a PhD candidate with the school of art history and cultural policy department, University College Dublin. Her research seeks to map the visual culture of birth in art and medicine from the eighteenth century to the present, with specific reference to Ireland. This work is part of her research on the obstetric gaze. Martina is also a visual artist. Her work focuses on the interpretation and representation of women's lived experiences.
The pictorial genres of early anatomy – Dr Clare Guest.
Dr Clare Guest is a graduate of Corpus Christi College, Oxford. Her PhD on Italian Renaissance Humanism was carried out as James Ussher Scholar at Trinity College Dublin. She is currently the Muriel McCarthy Fellow at Bishop Marsh's Library and Research Associate in Italian at TCD. Her current work focuses on the role of classical humanism in the contemporary world and the ethical, intellectual and aesthetic enrichment which it can provide in an increasingly technologized society.
Paediatric foundations – writing children into medicine – Dr Gay Ashford
Gabrielle Ashford PhD, Childhood: studies in the history of children in eighteenth-century Ireland incorporating the digital humanities project 'Irish children in eighteenth-century schools and institutions' was funded by An Foras Feasa. Her research interests embrace eighteenth-century childhood, Irish emigration, and local and family research.
"The great class which lies between: the non-pauper insane" in nineteenth-century Ireland – Alice Mauger
Alice Mauger was awarded a Wellcome Trust doctoral studentship under which her doctoral studies are currently funded. Her PhD thesis is entitled '"The Great Class which lies between": Provision for the Non-Pauper Insane in Ireland, c.1830-1900'. Through a close survey of the records of eight selected mental hospitals, official records, newspapers and medical literature, her thesis explores domestic and institutional provision for the Irish non-pauper insane from during the nineteenth century, a period marked by significant socio-economic change.
The poster presentations were a great success, and sparked lots of interesting discussions on the day. The judging panel selected Alice Mauger's poster as the best on the day, and in a forthcoming blog post Alice will discuss her research in more detail.