Poster promoting mass X-ray screening

Poster promoting mass miniature radiography with illustration of three geese(?)

Infectious diseases such as tuberculosis were combated using mass miniature radiography. It was used in the UK during the 1940s. This poster advertised mobile screening programmes used to detect pulmonary tuberculosis in large groups of people. Early diagnosis meant lower risk of infection to others such as co-workers or family. It also meant a higher chance of recovery. The poster is possibly aimed at parents because it features a cartoon image of a mother goose with her brood. The headline reads, ‘Confidence in your future, have your chest x-rayed.’ Mass miniature radiography only became possible with pre-war technological developments. These included extremely small, fast camera lenses that were applied to X-ray work. Mobile X-ray services played a large role in public health campaigns against tuberculosis in the 1940s and 1950s. Mobile X-ray services were very successful. They were phased out in the UK in the 1960s. However, they are still used in other parts of the world.