What We're Watching: The Forgotten Plague

Curious about previous infectious disease outbreaks as we live through this one? Are these times really unprecedented?

Check out the PBS American Experience documentary The Forgotten Plague: Tuberculosis in America,  available for free for all Durham Tech faculty, staff, and students and streaming through Films on Demand.

This documentary is recommended by Durham Tech biology and microbiology instructor Dorothy Wood. 

Why does Dr. Wood recommend The Forgotten Plague (other than it being generally an awesome use of an hour)? 

Living through this COVID-19 pandemic, we feel as if these are unprecedented times. I highly recommend watching the documentary The Forgotten Plague, which reminds us that the USA has implemented efforts to reduce infection rates in years past.  This fascinating look at tuberculosis explores the discovery of infectious agents and how the first public health measures changed society forever. Thanks to an extensive public health campaign in the early 1900s, we now have Kleenex, shorter hemlines, and waffle cones!

Waffle cones!? And I do appreciate a flexible hemline. 

To access this film, use any of the links in this blog post and log in off-campus using your Durham Tech username and password--the same one you would use for Sakai or Self-Service. Want to check out other documentaries available through Films on Demand? Go through the Library’s Articles, Journals, and Databases box on our webpage, click on F for Films on Demand, and check out what's available.