Medicine on Screen The National Library of Medicine

To the People of the United States (USPHS, 1944)

This film illustrates the serious problem of syphilis, particularly as it affects American armed forces during World War II. It presents numbers of cases nationwide and in New York State in particular, comparing the figures to Scandinavian countries where the disease does not carry the same stigma and more people are routinely tested. Shown are the importance and relative ease of detection and cure, and a comparison to Denmark’s syphilis program specifically.

They Do Come Back (National Tuberculosis Association, 1940)

Young man of "Everytown" has an oral hemorrhage which subsequent examination and tests show was caused by tuberculosis. He goes to sanitarium for treatment and extensive bed rest. Epidemiological investigation reveals source of infection was lip contact with his fiancée. The importance of occupational therapy and aptitude tests is demonstrated during the patient's recovery and rehabilitation. Scenes include: sputum and blood samples, enlarged tubercle bacilli, tuberculin test, X-ray, pneumothorax surgery, and patient drafting in occupational therapy.

The Army Nurse (United States War Office, 1945)

Released in the closing months of the Second World War, this film explores the work of the army nurse in part from the perspective of a wounded soldier. Intended to be shown to a variety of audiences including servicemen, nurses, and potential recruits to nursing, it has a reassuring message about the skill and effectiveness of the army nursing service. It also comforts its audiences with a story about the therapeutic uses of femininity. The film opens with a soldier wounded in action. Coming out of delirium, the first person he sees is a female army nurse, who smiles and winks at him.

The Run Around (National Tuberculosis and Respiratory Disease Association, 1969)

This film opens with a cartoon segment. The main character, a coughing, sputtering man named Mr. Hack, is enraged by the amount of air pollution in his town. He decides to find the cause of the problem, first making his way to a nearby factory to complain to the owner. The factory owner denies responsibility for the problem and feigns concern about protecting the environment. The owner tells Mr. Hack that the electric power company is the one responsible for the problem, so Mr. Hack goes there next.

The Reward of Courage [Silent] (American Society for the Control of Cancer, 1921)

A Rediscovered Cancer Film of the Silent Era In 1921 the American Society for the Control of Cancer released The Reward of Courage. The film, a silent melodrama, was designed to persuade viewers to visit a physician for regular checkups and at the first sign of the disease.

Rodney (National Tuberculosis Association, 1950)

The film begins with a plea to the viewer to buy Christmas seals. In film graphics, the story of a young man named Rodney is told. Rodney walks through his town and visits his physician for a yearly physical examination. An X-ray suggests tuberculosis. Further tests are done, and the diagnosis is confirmed. The doctor outlines the process of infection and the population at risk. The necessity of rest cure is explained. Rodney is shown in a tuberculosis sanitorium as his physician tells him that tuberculosis can be cured in any climate with rest and proper food.

Reconnaissance for Yellow Fever in the Nuba Mtns, Southern Sudan 1954 (Telford Work, 2006)

An Epidemiological Expedition into the Interior of Africa In the early 1950s Dr. Telford H. Work and Dr. Richard Moreland Taylor traveled to the Sudan to study an outbreak of yellow fever. Flying to Khartoum, they took their equipment by train to El Obeid, and by jeep to the Nuba Mountains (spanning the southern part of the present-day post-partition Sudan and the northern part of South Sudan). Accompanied by Dr.

Public Enemy (USPHS,and Westinghouse, 1960)

Dr. Leroy Burney, Surgeon General of the United States Public Health Service, and other authorities discuss the hazards of air pollution, its major causes and what is being done to control it. The film shows air sampling apparatus and an exhibit and scenes from the Community Air Pollution Conference in Washington, D.C.

Plastic Reconstruction of Face [Silent] (Producer unknown, 1918)

This film includes scenes in which a man and woman are carving different facial molds; a woman carves an ear; a man puts on a fake chin; a woman puts touch up paint on the man's fake chin, and finally, a fake nose and eye piece are put on a man who is disfigured.

Personal Cleanliness (US Navy, 1945)

In this film aimed at marines in the field, some points of personal hygiene are presented in humorous animation. The results of inattention to cleanliness, especially of the feet, are stressed. Learn more about this film and search its transcript at NLM Digital Collections: http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/9440899 Learn more about the National Library of Medicine's historical audiovisuals program at: https://www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/collections/films