13. Typhoid Mary

In today's episode, we discuss Mary Mallon (not Malone, although we do mispronounce it for the first 15 minutes or so - we promise Kim corrects us part way through!), an Irish-born American cook who is commonly referred to as Typhoid Mary. She earned this nickname because it is believed that she spread typhoid fever to dozens of people throughout NYC. We then talk about the public perception of Mallon by addressing some of the infections that she was thought to have caused, her arrest, and her decades long isolation. Next we dig a little deeper into what it means that she was a “healthy carrier,” and how the health technology of the time affected how she was treated. But we also look at how other “healthy carriers” from that time were treated and what differentiated them from Mallon (you'll never guess! lol). Finally, we  address the overall impact that Mallon’s situation had on the medical world and beyond.

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Hosts: Kimberly Fludd and Rebecca L. Salois

Logo Design: Samantha Wallace

Music: Shawn P. Russell

Sound Consultant and Mixing: Shawn P. Russell

Recording and Editing: Rebecca L. Salois

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Sources:

“‘Typhoid Mary’ Strikes Back Bacteriological Theory and Practice in Early Twentieth-Century Public Health" by Judith Walzer Leavitt

The Cook Who Became a Pariah by Anna Faherty

"Mary Mallon (1869-1938) and the history of typhoid fever," from the Annals of Gastroenterology

"The Doctor Who Championed Hand-Washing And Briefly Saved Lives" for NPR