National BCG Committee, Ireland
The recent outbreak of tuberculosis in a primary school in Cork, has led to calls for the review of the way TB services and especially the BCG vaccination are implemented in Ireland. A previous outbreak in Cork in 2007 was the result of a lack of routine BCG vaccination in the area. Amongst the papers in the College's archive are a number of items relating to TB, including the papers of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century National Association for the Prevention of Tuberculosis, and the some papers relating to the National BCG Committee.
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| Saint Ultan's Hospital, c.1919 |
In the early part of the twentieth century Tuberculosis remained a major health issue in Ireland. Although by the 1930s rates were declining Ireland still had the 'highest incidence of tuberculosis mortality in young adults among twenty four European and North American countries'.[1] The BCG vaccine had been first used in Europe in the 1920s but Britain and Ireland were slow to accept its effectiveness. When Dr Dorothy Stopford-Price administered a BCG vaccination at Saint Ultan's hospital in January 1937, Saint Ultan's became the first hospital in Great Britain and Ireland to use the vaccine. Dr Price's extensive research work and clinical trials were a corner stone in the fight against TB in Ireland. Her work at Saint Ultan's showed the effectiveness of the BCG vaccine, with TB mortality rates dropping from 77% to 28%.[2]
In1949 the then Minister for Health, Dr Noel Brown, established the National BCG Committee. The committee was to introduce a nationwide BCG vaccination programme, and was responsible for training, appointing and supporting vaccinators; keeping central records on vaccination and producing publicity to encourage vaccination. In recognition of the work already done by Saint Ultan's Hospital in the area of TB prevention the committee was based in the hospital, and Dorothy Price was appointed chairman of the eight member committee. Preserved with the Saint Ultan's Hospital Papers are a small number of documents relating to the National BCG Committee, including a set of the committee's published annual reports, which give extensive data on the committee's activities, and some of their publicity photographs.
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| Nurses receiving their BCG Vaccination, SU/8/1/4 |
As well as the photographs produced by the National BCG Committee, there are also a number of publicity photographs produced by the International Tuberculosis Campaign. The ITC was a joint venture of UNICEF and three Scandinavian voluntary organisations, which had already been running vaccination programmes in war torn Europe. Sent up in March 1948 the ITC ran vaccination programmes across Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia.
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Indore - Central India.
BCG team travelling by elephant and carrying colourful BCG posters, SU/8/2/4 |
Also with the papers is a medal created by the Institute Pasteur to commemorate the centenary of the birth of Albert Calmette, one of the discoverers of the BCG vaccine. The National BCG Committee's Annual Report for 1965 shows Doctor Rose O'Doherty being presented with a Calmette medal.
[1] Margaret Ó hÓgartaigh, 'Dr Dorothy Price and the elimination of childhood tuberculosis' in J Augusteijn (ed.), Ireland in the 1930s. New perspectives (Dublin, 1999), p.76
[2] Ó hÓgartaigh, 'Dr Dorothy Price', p.78