Dr Wu Lien-teh: modernising post-1911 China’s public health service

Abstract

A young Chinese doctor from a small British colony gaining fame for his role in ending a pneumonic plague in faraway north-east China is indeed a remarkable story. Wu Lien-teh (1879–1960), although standing at only 5 feet 2 inches, short even by Chinese standards, towered over many of his contemporaries because of his dedicated medical work. He was also prominent in the advancement of social and cultural causes. In particular, he campaigned against the opium trade, which had caused irreparable harm to health in China and Southeast Asia. Beyond his battle against the pneumonic plague in Manchuria, Wu was also in the forefront of efforts to create a modern public health service in China. His efforts helped China regain control of quarantine centres in all major ports that had come under the supervision of foreign powers. Wu was also called to deal with the cholera epidemic in China's north-east region in 1920–21. Active in international conferences and research, Wu was the first Chinese to have his work published in the prestigious medical journal, Lancet. For his contributions, Wu was conferred honorary doctorates by Peking University, Hong Kong University and Tokyo University. In 1935, he was nominated for the Nobel prize for his fight against the 1910 Manchurian plague and for identifying the role of tarbagan marmots in the transmission of the disease.(1) The epidemic, one of the deadliest of its kind, killed an estimated 60,000 people in the affected regions of Manchuria during the seven months that it lasted.