The latest Summer Newsletter is out with what we have been up to for the past three months and also what is coming. You can sign up above to receive the next one and below is the Newsletter-Lite without images. If you have any ideas or projects you would like us to get involved with, please give Louise or Mark a call.
News from George Marshall Medical Museum
Notes on Hospitals…
Emily Cheetham, a regular volunteer, has recently completed a new display about Florence Nightingale and her impact upon hospital design. Pop in over the next few months to find out what could have happened to Worcester Infirmary if they’d followed her advice and take the rare chance to view plans from our archives and our copy of her ‘Notes on Hospitals’.
Caring for the Collection
In April we had our annual Spring Clean and in one morning managed 30 hours cleaning, completing five display cases and over 150 objects including the Silver Street Infirmary operating chair and the table around which the BMA was founded. After a recent grant from the Textile Society we have also applied UV film to each of the display cases. A thank you is due from Louise to all volunteers who have helped with these activities.
Adopt a Book
After recent requests by both generous individuals and the Worcester Royal Infirmary Nurses’ League to pay for the conservation of rare books in our collection, we will shortly be launching our Donate a Book scheme. Dr. John Prosser and Curator Louise Price will be taking photographs of those in most need of T.L.C., and the scheme will give you the chance to donate a small sum or the entire amount required for a book repair to be completed. Watch this space for more information and how to get involved.
Buildings Talk: Hospital Histories
We’re pleased to announce our upcoming evening of talks on Thursday 13th July. This is a great opportunity to hear speakers explore the hospital buildings of Worcestershire, with a focus on how their design may have impacted upon patients and their treatment. Speakers include Dr. Mark Gallagher: ‘Ronald Sandison, LSD and the ‘Beyond Within’ Powick Hospital, and known Worcester poets Mike Alma, Charley Barnes, Alan Durham and Polly Stephens will be performing during the evening.
Events at the George Marshall Medical Museum
Buildings Talk: Hospital Histories
July 13th, 6:30pm until late
Admission £3.50. Refreshments on arrival. Please book your space by emailing RSVPlecture@gmail.com or telephone Louise on 01905 760738.
Free Family Fun Day
July 29th, 11am-2pm
Come along for our annual free family day on Saturday 29th July. This year we’ll be inspired by Florence Nightingale, the lady with the lamp. Explore the Museum and look out for trails and fun activities.
Free event.
Half-term History Tours
October 24th, 11am, 12:30, 2pm.
Join our Curator on a free guided tour of the Museum. Be horrified by our death masks and the Victorian amputation and find out what our apothecary would have given you for tired eyes in 1900. All welcome. Booking advised.
Free event.
News from The Infirmary Museum
Powick rises again in Minecraft and LEGO©
During the half-term The Infirmary ran workshops with 11 young people from the Green Fingers Project. Thanks to volunteer Ken we were able to investigate Powick Hospital from the recent past of his memories and using a visit to The Hives Archives we obtained copies of the original plans. Over three days we encouraged the young people to rebuild Powick in Minecraft or LEGO© and the results have been great. We asked Student Ambassadors from the Computer Games Design degree to help with the game and technology and we learned they used over 1.2 million ‘bricks’ in the game to build it. The Chapel was very well recreated in LEGO©
Liar! Liar!
For Museums at Night this year, we made up things! Taking the normal tour we added a few wee fibs amongst the facts. Volunteers offered suggested fibs and rather than reveal them here, maybe you would like to come on another event? There was a great turnout and many had never visited before. We learned that sometimes facts are more unusual than fibs with most people thinking we made up Mr Garlick purchasing an artichoke field for the new Infirmary. Fascinating!! We gave carrot related prizes, hoping everyone’s eyesight might improve in advance of next visit. Sarah and Liz gave great tours and we were able to offer it for free/donations only and were very happy to see new faces. All events can be booked through www.bit.ly/TheInfirmaryTickets
Events at the Infirmary Museum
First Saturday Summer Tours
Saturday 1st July and 5th August, 11:00am, 12:00pm and 1:00pm
Free guided tours of the former Worcester Royal Infirmary, book at bit.ly/TheInfirmaryTickets
What makes my House Healthy?
Every Wednesday in August 10:00am-2:00pm, FREE
2nd = Bathroom, 9th = Kitchen, 16th = Garden and 23rd = Leisure Time
Weekly drop in for families to explore the history of bathroom, kitchen, garden and leisure time and how it relates to our health. Why did our ancestors wear a nightcap to bed? Book your free places atbit.ly/TheInfirmaryTickets
Medical Book Group: My Dear I wanted to Tell you by Louisa Young
Thursday 24th August 7:00-8:00pm
FREE event
Heritage Open Day
Saturday 9th September, 11:00am - 3:00pm and Tours 11:00am, 1:00pm, 2:00pm
An opportunity to see former nurses' home Mulberry House and hear its nursing history with some free tours thrown in. Book atbit.ly/TheInfirmaryTickets
What have Worcester’s Medical Museums been up to together?
Worcestershire World War One Hundred
After months of planning, we’re pleased to share the news that we had a very successful event at The Boynes Care Centre, celebrating its life as a former Voluntary Aid Detachment Hospital in Upton-upon-Severn. The Boynes, a Red Cross VAD Hospital under the command of owner Louisa Grice-Hutchinson, opened its doors to 20 injured soldiers in May 1917 and remained open until March 1919. If you couldn’t make it there’s an album of images available on our website at www.medicalmuseum.org.uk/www100.
A number of thank yous are in order, including to re-eanctors Discover History, staff at The Boynes Care Centre, poets Charley Barnes and Mike Alma, James Robertson from Warndon Library and staff and pupils at Hanley Swan Primary School. The event was funded by the HLF and part of the Worcestershire World War One Hundred project.
Summer Trainees and Students
This summer we are lucky to have two extra volunteers. Anastasia Maria Ciccocioppo is studying Cultural Anthropology at University of Bologna and is joining us under the ERASMUS+ scheme. She will be in The Hive researching how the National Health Service was received at the Worcester Royal Infirmary and in Worcestershire more widely. We expect 2018 to be a year of reflection and celebration for 70 years of the NHS. Anastasia will also be able to see how the two venues operate with school workshops, family activities and daily workings. From University of Leicester, we have Laura Althorpe who will be spending time in both venues helping review the textile collection, reboxing when needed, carrying out surveys with visitors and non-visitors so we can learn about who is visiting us and what we need to do to get those who aren’t visiting yet. It’s been five years since The Infirmary exhibition opened and it is always good to learn more about visitors to see how we can meet their expectations.
A message from Luke Fletcher
It’s been a busy few months since I began working with the Medical Museums earlier this year. We have had lots of school visits and it’s been great fun delivering workshops, tours and handling sessions to a range of students - from Year 2 all the way up to those studying for their GCSEs! We’ve also had a number of community groups visit us at the Infirmary and George Marshall Medical Museum and have loved showing them around our exhibits and buildings.
It’s been a pleasure working with our team of Student Ambassadors and developing the workshops that we run and I’m looking forward to welcoming more schools and groups to our amazing medical museums soon.
This newsletter will be sent up to four times a year and more information can always be found on the website and social media channels for each venue below.
“THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF WORCESTER’S MEDICAL MUSEUMS”
Mark, Louise and Luke