04/30/2026
Immunization, namely through the use of vaccines, has changed the face of medicine and public health across generations. From 18th century smallpox inoculations to contemporary COVID-19 vaccines, immunization efforts have saved countless lives through preventing diseases and viruses. In honor of World Immunization Week, we take a look at snapshots in the history of Woman’s Medical College and Hahnemann Medical College that reflect the value of immunization in medicine.
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1: Vera Bary, M.D., and Charlotte L. Merrick, M.D., both students in the WMCP class of 1878 wrote their theses on the use of vaccination, documenting study on the effectiveness of immunization efforts internationally.
2: Through the American Women’s Hospitals, healthcare professionals helped provide immunizations and other medical services to communities around the world, including this rural community pictured in Jellico, Tennessee (1940). Many WMCP students, alumnae, and faculty participated in these efforts.
3: Knowing how to properly give a vaccine is just as important as the vaccine itself. Student clinics like the one pictured here, hosted by HMC students in 1967, helped med students gain hands-on experience with vaccines while actively helping build immunity in communities.
4: Vaccines did not always come in the same forms! Originally used for other practices like bloodletting, scarificators, like the one pictured here from our collections, were used in the 19th century to administer smallpox vaccinations by making small cuts into the skin used to introduce the vaccine into the body.
