The Melnick Museum has digitized a recording of a March of Dimes fund raising drive from 1952. The drive was held to replenish funds after a recent polio epidemic. During the 20 minute radio program, the announcer Mr. Caldwell interviews three families who were affected by polio. (One of the interviewed children, Judy Shakley, donated… Continue reading Hear the Iron Lung at work!
Child birth in America
For centuries, child birth occurred naturally with help of trained or experienced women. Midwives were often well trained women with children of their own. Midwives usually practiced within ethnic and class-based communities. In addition to helping with the birth, their fee often included check-up visits and assistance with household work for about a week. Although… Continue reading Child birth in America
A short history of stethoscopes
Today stethoscopes are a typical fixture around doctors' necks. They are commonly used to listen to the sounds of the heart and lungs as well as the flow of blood during blood pressure readings. The practice of percussion and immediate auscultation were popular in physical examinations by the early 1800s. In immediate auscultation, physicians placed… Continue reading A short history of stethoscopes
Light the Wick
The Rose Melnick Medical Museum has been featured on "Light The Wick," a weekly video newsletter about people and events on Wick Avenue, Youngstown State University's (YSU) arts corridor. The show typically includes profiles of students, staff, faculty, visiting artists, and administrators in the YSU arts scene as well as coverage of noteworthy events. The… Continue reading Light the Wick
Old photographs found
While cleaning out a room in the museum, I found a shelf full of old photographs and negatives. Many of these photographs depicted local physicians and hospitals. I thought others might be interested in the images and decided that enlargements would be great decoration for the museum. I had 28 of the photographs scanned at… Continue reading Old photographs found
Summer Festival of the Arts!
Saturday, July 11th and Sunday, July 12th, 2009 Wick Aveune and the YSU campus will be packed with a variety of kids crafts, local art, and ethnic food! This year, the Rose Melnick Medical Museum will be open. This is a great time to check us out! As always, admission to the Museum is free.… Continue reading Summer Festival of the Arts!
1890 Rx
Last week, while leafing through a 1890s medical book from the museum's library, I found a small slip of paper between the pages. It was a prescription recipe for the pharmacy of H. Waterman in Ravenna, OH. As I looked over the neat handwriting, I realized that the drug names were written in Latin and… Continue reading 1890 Rx
Sometimes gross but fascinating…
One of the blogs on the Melnick Medical Museum's "blogroll" is Morbid Anatomy. The blog is written by Joanna Ebenstein. For more than two years she has used it to explore the intersection of anatomy and art. As a photographer and graphic designer, Ebenstein has an eye for visually interesting images. She is interested in… Continue reading Sometimes gross but fascinating…
Polio survivors face new challenges
On Monday, National Public Radio aired a story about Dr. Lauro Halstead, a doctor who published his research about what would come to be known as post-polio syndrome (PPS) 25 years ago this month. Halstead's research described PPS as a condition that affects polio survivors decades after they were first struck by the disease and… Continue reading Polio survivors face new challenges
AMA anniversary
Today, May 7th, is the 162nd anniversary of the founding of the American Medical Association (AMA). The mission of the organization was to advance the science of medicine, to improve the standards for medical education, to develop a program of medical ethics, and to improve the health of the public. The AMA was organized in… Continue reading AMA anniversary
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