Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (RSTMH) was founded in 1907 by Sir James Cantlie and Dr. George Carmichael Low. Sir Patrick Manson, the Society's first President (1907-9) is generally acknowledged as the father of tropical medicine. He passed the presidency on to the Nobel laureate Sir Ronald Ross (1909-11), discoverer of the role of mosquitoes in the transmission of malaria. Since that time, many of the most distinguished practitioners and researchers in the field of tropical medicine have been fellows of the Society.

The objectives of the Society are "to promote and advance the study, control and prevention of diseases in man and other animals in warm climates, facilitate discussion and the exchange of information among those who are interested in tropical diseases, and generally to promote the work of those interested in these objectives.originally were to study and discuss diseases in tropical countries". Today the RSTMH is a multi-disciplinary Society which deals with international health as well as classic tropical diseases.

In 1920, King George V gave his permission for the Society to use the Royal prefix. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is Patron of The Society and Her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal is an Honorary Fellow.

Fellows of The Society are entitled to use the post-nominal letters FRSTM&H.