Title:

Eradicate Malaria by Spraying

Creator:

Indian Malaria Eradication Programme

Date:

[ca. 1960]

Description:

From the 1950s to the 1980s, malaria eradication campaigns dominated the international health agenda. Particularly active programs in Latin America, South Asia, and Africa consumed a substantial proportion of national health expenditures as well as major inputs from the World Health Organization and the U.S. Agency for International Development. Optimists argued that given enough insecticide, medicine, and money, the disease-causing mosquito could be eliminated from the planet. It gradually became apparent that the strength of the parasite to survive and continue causing disease in human hosts had been grossly underestimated and the program ultimately failed. Lack of community involvement in campaigns, cultural and organizational inflexibility, and inadequate research support were all contributing factors in the program's demise. This poster from India reflects the overconfidence in eradication. The embellished image of a man spraying insecticide on a larger-than-life mosquito suggests that wiping out the insects, by using insecticides such as DDT, would lead to the elimination of the disease. It did not.. NOTE: Slide of original poster image is slightly blurry.

Publisher:

Indian Malaria Eradication Programme

Original Repository:

The History of Medicine Division. Prints and Photographs Collection

Rights:

Courtesy of the National Library of Medicine.

Disclaimer:

The National Library of Medicine's Profiles in Science program has made every effort to secure proper permissions for posting items on the web site. In this instance, however, it has either not been possible to identify or contact the current copyright owner. If you have information regarding the copyright owner, please contact https://support.nlm.nih.gov.

Genre:

Posters
Slides (photographs)

Subject:

Malaria and Public Health

Format:

Still Image

Extent:

1 pages

Language:

English

Legacy Source Citation:

Original Repository. History of Medicine Division. Prints and Photographs Collection. 11611. Free Text. This image may also be accessed from the Images from the History of Medicine (IHM).. URL. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/ihm/. IHM Order Number. A025617

Legacy ID:

VCBBCS

NLM ID:

101584655X35

Profiles Collection:

Visual Culture and Health Posters

Shareable Link:

https://profiles.nlm.nih.gov/101584655X35

Story Section:

Infectious Disease