Mansfield type bronchoscope, used for inserting tubes into the lungs, developed by Ruth Mansfield

Ruth Mansfield (1902-1994) developed this bronchoscope to see inside the airways and lungs and help place a tube through a person’s mouth and throat. This tube, known as an endotracheal tube can be connected to a ventilator or breathing device.

One of the first women to study at Westminster Hospital Medical School, Mansfield raised her family before returning to work in anaesthesia. She specialised in anaesthesia for chest, lung, throat, and heart surgery, at a time when very few people were working in this area. At start of the National Health Service in 1948, she became a Consultant at the Brompton Hospital. During her career she volunteered at hospitals in Malaysia and Israel. After retiring she spent 10 years at the Christian Medical College Hospital, Vellore, India introducing her speciality. She was awarded a MBE for this work.