Lessons - GCSE History

What was life like in Medieval England

Find out how long people lived, why they died so young and what were the major killers in this period.

Medieval medical treatments

If you fell ill, how were you treated and did they do more harm than good?

The influence of Islamic medicine (AQA only)

Find out what men like Avicenna and ibn al-Nafis contributed to medical thought.

Medical practioners in medieval England - who did what?

Barber surgeons, physicians, wise women, apothecaries.......who did what and who actually might do you more harm than good?

The Church in medieval England

Find out how much power the Church had and how it used that power to stifle and sometimes even help medical progress.

The Black Death

What did medieval England think caused it and how did they try to treat it.

William Harvey and the circulation of blood

Why was Harvey so significant?

What changed in the 16th - 18th century?

surgery, medical treatments, training, the influence of the church......so much changes from 1600 - 1800.

1348 v 1666 - change and continuity in dealing with major plague outbreaks

Some treatments did change and how they tried to avoid catching it but find out what changed and what stayed the same.

The 19th century: the first anaesthetic and John Snow's fight against cholera

from anaesthetics and the work of James Simpson, to the brilliance of John Snow in proving cholera was a water bourne disease.

The changing role of women in medicine in the 19th century

From Florence Nightingale to Elizabeth Garrett, how did their role beging to change and what impact did that have?

Female Doctors: Elizabeth Garrett Anderson+ the Edinburgh 7

find out how the role of women developed as Doctors in the second half of the 19th century.

The Great Stink

Why did Parliament all of a sudden decide to spend a lot of money creating a modern sewage system in London? Answer.....the Great Stink of 1858 - but what impact did it have on public health?

Edward Jenner and Florence Nightingale

Jenner developed the first vaccine and Nightingale revolutionised nursing.

Louis Pasteur and germ theory / Lister and antiseptics

What did Pasteur work out and why was his theory on the origins of disease such a seismic change? How did it impact on Joseph Lister?

Louis Pasteur vs Robert Koch

Find out how they competed against each other in the development of vaccines and how Koch managed to discover the actual germs that causing some of the 19th century's biggest killers.

Public health part 1: 1848 - 1875

What did the government in Britain do to try to improve the health of the people - two key acts: the Public Health Act of 1848 and another one in 1875.

Blood transfusions, x-rays and the magic bullets

Find out how surgery improved thanks to blood transfusions and x-rays and also how magic bullets helped fight some very nasty germs.

Marie Curie and radioactivity

Find out how Marie Curie helped to fight cancer and other diseases by discovering new elements in the periodic table.

Public health part 2: 1875 - 1914

find out how the government took an increasing role in making sure the public didn't get sick and if they did, helping them to recover by providing medical services for them. This video covers the 1875 Public Health Act through to the Liberal reforms up to 1914

The impact of WW1 on medicine: part 1

How did world war one change medicine? We see improvements in blood transfusions, surgery, rehabilitation and the wider adoption of x-rays.

The impact of WW1 on medicine - part 2: the role of women

how did the carnage of WW1 impact women and their participation in medicine?

The impact of WW1 on medicine part 3 - blood banks

Find out how blood banks changed surgery.

The 20th century: the century of new diseases

Find out what new diseases appear and what old ones disappear thanks to mass vaccination campaigns.

The development of penicillin

Arguably the most significant medical breakthrough of all time but who actually is responsible for it: Alexander Fleming or Florey and Chain?

The birth of the NHS

Why did it appear and what impact has it had?

The impact of WW2

Find out how WW2 changed medicine and medical provision in the 20th century.

The fight against lung cancer and tuberculosis

TB was a massive killer in the 19th century, find out how the government almost entirely eradicated it + how did the fight against lung cancer develop across the 20th century.

Medical advances in the 20th century

The 20th century more than any other 100 year period, has seen massive advancements in both treatment and crucially diagnosis via early detection. Find out how scans, blood tests and screening programmes all combined to catch killer diseases early.