A historical perspective on the ‘north-south health divide’ and regional health

A historical perspective on the ‘north-south health divide’ and regional health inequalities

Deadline: 20 May 2022

Interested in the social history of health, and its relevance to contemporary problems? This PhD project will investigate the historical development, extent, experiences, and representations of regional health inequalities in England, focussing on the north-south divide. Applicants should include a proposal outlining how they would approach this project: you may wish to focus on periods where health inequalities came to the fore (e.g. nineteenth-century sanitary reform era, characterised by debates about industrialisation and health; the interwar era, when health improvement efforts were undercut by poverty and unemployment, and the early 1980s, when the Black Report drew attention to health inequalities, while deindustrialisation fuelled regional inequalities). Themes which may shape this research include social class, employment and working conditions, gender, and the body. A wide range of qualitative and quantitative sources could potentially be exploited for this research, including medical officer of health reports; archives of medical associations; regional health authority and council archival materials; epidemiological and demographic data; government records; newspapers, oral history re-use; medical journals and publications.

This is an exciting opportunity to complete a PhD while participating in a wider multidisciplinary Wellcome Trust funded project on regional health inequalities and the successful candidate will be expected to contribute to wider project team discussions and publications. Newcastle hosts a thriving multidisciplinary medical humanities network encompassing postgraduate researchers, and resources that may be useful for this research, including the Pybus Collection and the Donaldson (Sir Liam) Archive.

Last modified: Fri, 01 Jul 2022 11:49:13 BST