Lives at Risk: Public Health in Nineteenth-Century Egypt

Muhammad Ali introduced Western medicine to Egypt in the mid-nineteenth century, leading to the establishment of a Western-style school of medicine and an international Quarantine Board. These institutions succeeded in providing a rudimentary public health service, including a vaccination program against smallpox, but the disease-oriented, individual-care practice of medicine was incompatible with the health care requirements of a largely rural, agrarian population. Lives at Risk is part of UC Press' Voices Revived program, which commemorates the mission of UC Press to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 246 pages
Publication date: 25 March 2022
Publisher: University of California Press

Lives at Risk delves into the introduction of Western medicine into Egypt during the mid-nineteenth century. Muhammad Ali introduced two significant innovations: a Western-style school of medicine and an international Quarantine Board. The success and failure of these institutions hold immense interest for historians of medicine and modern Egypt. Additionally, the author's narrative connects to contemporary health issues in developing countries, making Lives at Risk appealing to medical and social anthropologists. The establishment of the quarantine facility and medical school in Egypt led to the establishment of a rudimentary public health service. Paramedical personnel were trained to provide primary health care to the rural population. A successful vaccination program successfully eradicated smallpox from the nation. However, the disease-oriented, individual-care practice of medicine derived from the urban hospital model of industrializing Europe was wholly incompatible with the healthcare needs of a predominantly rural, agrarian population.

This title is part of UC Press' Voices Revived program, which celebrates the University of California Press' commitment to discovering and nurturing exceptional minds, providing them with a platform to express their ideas, reach a wider audience, and have a significant impact. Voices Revived resurrects high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship from the past, making it accessible again through print-on-demand technology. Originally published in 1990, this title is now revitalized and available to a new generation of scholars and readers.

Dimension: 216 x 140 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520304994