Public Health

• Public Health

  The industrial revolution began in the 18th century. Lots of people moved into cities like London to work in factories. The places they lived were cramped, dirty and great for spreading diseases like cholera.
• What was a significant trend during the 18th and 19th centuries regarding population movement?


  Many people moved from the countryside to towns to work in factories.
• Why couldn't good housing be built quickly in towns during the 18th and 19th centuries?


  The towns grew so quickly that housing couldn't be constructed fast enough.
• What was the consequence of building houses as close together as possible in towns?

  It resulted in little outside space and poor ventilation.
• What was a common living situation for families with four or more children during this period?


  They often lived in a single room.
• Where did the poorest families typically live?


  In cellars.
• What was a common misconception among people regarding sanitation during this time?


  They didn't understand the need for clean water or good sewerage systems.
• What was the typical bathroom situation in most houses during this period?

  Most houses had no bathroom and shared an outside toilet called a privy.
• What was the function of a privy?


  It served as an outside toilet for shared use.
• What was the relationship between cesspits and privies?


  Each privy was built above a cesspit.
• Who collected cesspit and household waste?

  Nightmen collected the waste.
• What did nightmen do with the collected waste?


  They threw the waste into rivers or piled it up for the rain to wash away.
• What did water companies set up in the streets?


  Water pumps that were shared between many houses.
• What was a common issue with the water supply from the pumps?

  The water supply was often contaminated by waste from cesspits or rivers.
• What disease caused thousands of deaths in cholera epidemics?

  Cholera
• In what year did cholera reach Britain?

  1831
• How many people died of cholera in Britain in 1832?


  Over 21,000 people
• How does cholera spread?


  When infected sewage gets into drinking water
• What are the main symptoms of cholera?


  Extreme diarrhoea
• Why do cholera sufferers often die?


  From loss of water and minerals
• Did cholera affect both rich and poor people?


  Yes
• What was the best theory about the cause of cholera at the time?

  The miasma theory
• What action did the government take in response to cholera?


  They started regulating the burial of the dead
• Was the government's action effective in halting the spread of cholera?


  No, it did little to halt the spread
• When did the 1832 cholera epidemic decline?


  After 1832
• What happened to public interest in cholera after the 1832 epidemic declined?


  Interest was lost
• In which years did cholera epidemics recur after 1832?


  1848, 1853-54, and 1865-66
• What significant report did Edwin Chadwick publish in 1842?


  A report on poverty and health
• What did Chadwick's report reveal about living conditions in towns compared to the countryside?


  Living conditions in towns were worse for people's health than in the countryside
• What did Chadwick's report suggest the government should do regarding drainage and sewerage systems?


  The government should pass laws for proper drainage and sewerage systems, funded by local taxes
• What event in 1848 increased pressure on Parliament to pass a Public Health Act?

  A cholera epidemic that killed 53,000 people
• What did the 1848 Public Health Act establish?


  A central Board of Health
• Who was included as a member of the central Board of Health established by the 1848 Act?


  Edwin Chadwick
• Under the 1848 Act, what condition was required for a town to set up its own local board of health?


  The town's taxpayers had to agree
• What were the limitations of the impact of the 1848 Public Health Act?


  • Very few towns chose to set up health boards
  • Those that did often refused to spend money to improve conditions
  • Chadwick faced opposition and was forced to retire in 1854
  • The central Board of Health was dismantled in 1858
• Public Health

  Despite the work of Chadwick and John Snow, cholera returned to Britain in 1865. However, the eventual acceptance of Snow's findings and the 'Great Stink' of 1858 did prompt key changes in public health.
• Who was John Snow?


  A London doctor who linked cholera to contaminated water
• What connection did John Snow demonstrate regarding cholera?


  He showed that cholera was linked to contaminated water
• What action did John Snow take during the cholera outbreak in 1854?


  He interviewed residents and mapped disease cases
• What did Snow's investigations reveal about the victims of cholera in Broad Street?


  All victims used the same water pump