Medical research in wartime / by Sir Edward Mellanby.

  • Mellanby, Edward, Sir, 1884-1955.
Date:
[1943?]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Medical research in wartime / by Sir Edward Mellanby. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    that medical scientists have served this country and its fighting Services well, and in counting our blessings let us not forget the enormous debt of gratitude we owe to this small but almost unknown body of men and women, scattered about in the research institutes, universities, and hospitals, who, by devoting their lives to the search for new knowledge, have forged the weapons which have proved so effective for the maintenance and restoration of health in wartime. The Medical Research Council In the course of my further remarks it will be necessary for me to refer often to the Medical Research Council, and it may be well to explain what this body is. Although it is an institution of the State, financed by the Government, it is not a large self-contained Department like the Ministry of Health and other Government Departments. The Council itself is a small body which meets once a month, and is made up for the most part of men of great experience in different branches of medical science, changing partially each year. It has a small administrative staff and a larger, though still small, permanent research staff. As its object is to help and co¬ ordinate medical research generally, much of the work with which it is associated is done in the universities and hospitals of the country, including those of this city, by the professors, lecturers, and medical men on the staffs of these institutions When, therefore, I talk about the Medical ’’Research Council, this is simply a short way of referring to the organized medical research of most of those engaged professionally in this country < in such labours. Any success it attains or has attained can only be regarded as a reflection of our general standard of 11 medical research, and must largely depend also on the main- jl tenance of the good will and active co-operation of these u investigators. Even in peacetime a large proportion of the medical research | in Britain is in one way or another associated with the Medical f; Research Council. In war the natural trend of events makes | this association closer. The reason fpr this is obvious. Most men engaged in research want to direbt their energies to the solution of problems that benefit the war effort. A body like ; the Medical Research Council, working closely with the Services and other Government Departments, is more aware of the immediate problems requiring investigation. In these times, a. therefore, either research workers ask the Council for advice ii on important problems or else the Council approaches suitable, ofi workers for their help. Working committees are formed of groups of investigators in each subject, so that each worker T can be kept informed of the investigations of others and the s researches can be co-ordinated. About 40 research committees;45; on different war problems have been formed, and these cover ft a large part of the field of medical science. Representatives j|?t! of the Services are members of all war committees. It mus ia be emphasized that the initiative for action often comes fron ;r outside the Medical Research Council.