Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine: Closing

It is with great sadness that I note that the Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine at University College London is closing.  I initially thought the notice was simply a belated and poor April Fools Joke, but it appears to be true. 

Of course, I am utterly ignorant of the details surrounding this decision, but I am nevertheless stunned.  I had the great fortune of visiting the Centre last July in connection with an unrelated conference at the Faculty of Laws at UCL, and I had hoped that my visit there was simply the first of several to follow in ensuing years.  Alas, it is not to be, and while the history of medicine is undoubtedly healthy enough as a discipline to survive and flourish, it still feels like a tremendous loss, even from this side of the pond.

The Wellcome Collection and the Wellcome Library, which are separately maintained by the Wellcome Trust, will most likely continue (relatively?) unaffected by the decision to close the Centre.

Finally, to mark the closing, the Centre is hosting an international conference July 15-17, 2010.

Here is the text of the announcement with details of the conference, reprinted verbatim as it appeared on the Medieval Medicine listserv:

The Wellcome Trust and UCL have decided to close the Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine and initiate a two year wind down, without a quinquennial peer review. This marks the end of the Centre, and its prior incarnation, the Academic Unit of the Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine. The academic staff of the Centre would like to invite you to a three day international conference on the Future of Medical History, to take place on 15-17 July 2010 in London. In keeping with the research of the Centre and former Institute, contributions will be welcome on all aspects of medical history. Papers will be limited to 20 minutes each. Please send an abstract and contact details to Lauren Cracknell (l.cracknell@ucl.ac.uk) by 1 June 2010. Due to current circumstances, the Centre will not be able to cover travel and accommodation. Please circulate this to your colleages and students.

Yours Sincerely

Sonu

Sonu Shamadasani
Acting Director
Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine at UCL
Professor of Jung History

 

UPDATE, 4/16: Do see the comments below for further information.  The official announcement is now posted at the WTCHOM website.  And the Centre recently launched a new Friends of the WTCHOM Blog which I might hope would be quite active in the next few weeks and months.

UPDATE #2: While I obviously venture no claims as to accuracy, a seemingly well-informed commentator on the wonderful Corporeality blog provides further information regarding the future of the faculty (that many of them will simply be absorbed into the UCL Department of History), and suggests that the situation is not necessarily as bleak as might be surmised.

UPDATE #3: See the latest post at Corporeality, which contains a statement from the outreach historian at the Centre.

UPDATE #4: Although I generally dislike doing so, I have removed several comments, including one of my own.  Concerned parties are welcome to communicate with me privately.

UPDATE #5, 4.17: BMJ coverage is here.

Comments

[Hist of Med historian]

Part of some general troubles the Centre fell into regarding finances. But overall the Trust is phasing out Centres and Units. They aren't going to be responsible for admin and other costs. Universities are going to have to pick up the tab if they want a detached centres devoted to Hist of Med...same thing has happened at Oxford.

[James Bradley]

I can't begin to express how stunned I am by this decision.

Having been out of the UK for a few years, it is hard for me to judge the reasons behind this decision?

Is it evidence of further drift towards the public understanding of science, or did the Wellcome take a big hit in the GFC? Is UCL so badly damaged by the cuts that it can't bear its share of the support?

Whatever, it's a black day for medical history.

[mature historian]

As regards the future of the discipline, one could argue that the discipline has now 'come of age' and can obtain funding and run journals without the Wellcome to hold its hand.