History of CHS
The Centre for Health and Society (CHS) was established jointly by the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences (MDHS) and the Faculty of Arts at the University of Melbourne in 1997, and was originally called the Centre for the Study of Health and Society. Professor Warwick Anderson, a cultural historian of medicine and the life sciences, was responsible for its establishment and appointed as Director in 1997. He continued in this role until his departure to the United States in 2001 to take up an academic post at UC-Berkeley and later at the University of Wisconsin.
The Centre was founded to meet an increasing demand from undergraduate and postgraduate students for teaching and research in the social dimensions of health and health care. To meet this demand, the CHS was set up as a multidisciplinary centre encompassing the disciplines of medical history, medical anthropology, health ethics, sociology of health and illness, and health policy analysis.
In 1999, the VicHealth Koori Health Research and Community Development Unit, now known as the Onemda VicHealth Koori Health Unit, was established under the leadership of Professor Ian Anderson, to bring together the academy, community and government around issues of Koori health. Onemda continues to be located within the Centre, and since 2001 Ian Anderson has been the Director of both Onemda and the CHS.
In 2001, the School of Population Health (SPH) was established within the MDHS Faculty and, together with a number of other centres and units, the CHS became part of the Department of Public Health in the School of Population Health. In 2003 the CHS moved from Grattan Street to its current location within the SPH in Bouverie Street.
When first established, the Centre was based administratively in the Faculty of MDHS, but functioned as a faculty centre in both Arts and MDHS. It continues to occupy this unique position within both MDHS and Arts. It also originally housed the Alma Unit for Women and Ageing, under the direction of Susan Feldman. The Alma Unit moved to Victoria University in 2000, and Susan Feldman remains an associate fellow of the CHS. Professor Warwick Anderson, also an associate, has recently moved back to Australia and currently holds the position of Professorial Research Fellow in the Department of History and the Centre for Values, Ethics and the Law in Medicine at the University of Sydney.
Centre for Health and Society 10-Year Anniversary Celebrations
Local and overseas guests helped CHS staff and students celebrate the Centre's 10-year anniversary on
11 and 12 March 2008. Activities included a research conversazione, a symposium, and a museum exhibition launch.
For more information, please click here
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