Soho's Contribution to Health Care History Walking Audio Tour

Overview

Soho wasn't just London's bohemian playground - it was a proving ground for medical ideas too radical for the establishment. This walking tour traces the district's surprising role in British healthcare history, from pioneering hospitals for women's health, ear disease and venereal disease, to London's most famous private anatomy school. Along the way, meet the outsiders and revolutionaries who shaped medicine here, contrasted through two very different women: Mary Seacole at the journey's start, and Florence Nightingale near its end in St James's. Drawing on Nick Black's book Walking London's Medical History, the route covers 1.3 miles and around an hour of walking. Highlights: - The site of Britain's first ear dispensary, founded in 1816, which grew into the Royal Ear Hospital. - The London Lock Hospital, a pioneering (and controversial) venereal disease clinic dating to 1862. - A finish at the Guards Crimean War Memorial, via Soho Square, Leicester Square and Canada House.