From ingenious treatments involving malaria to exquisite masterpieces, the Horton Arts Centre,
a site for socialising through various activities, has had an interesting history.
One of the most captivating tales from its past is that of Percy George Shute and his work
involving malaria.
In 1916 to 1918, there were 162,512 British admissions to hospital for malaria alone – an issue
that tends to be neglected in British history.
However, at the Horton Hospital, approximately ten-thousand patients underwent treatment by
induced malaria, since high fevers had the ability to cure other illnesses such as syphilis.
While PG Shute recovered from an illness of his own, he assisted Sir Ronald Ross (the man who
found the link between malaria and mosquitoes) in the pathology laboratory, where he learned
how to dissect mosquitoes.
This led to the establishment of a laboratory of specialist study for malaria at the Horton
Hospital – one of the first to be created in the UK.
Shute perfected the technique known as ‘Romanowsky staining’ (a technique used to prepare
cells for microscopic examination), and the unit’s fame began to spread, drawing hundreds of
Malariologists in for instructions.
After the introduction of penicillin, the therapeutic aspect of the Horton Hospital was no longer
necessary, so the laboratory remained as a malaria research centre for the next two decades.
Eventually, after treating seventeen-thousand patients with GPI (General Paralysis of the Insane
is caused by the final stage of syphilis), the Horton Malaria Research Laboratory and the Mott
Clinic closed in 1973.
For PG Shute’s dedication to his work, he won the Le Froy Gold Medal in 1925, along with
receiving the MBE in 1948.
Despite his awards, Shute was not fully celebrated in the eyes of the public; possibly due to his
work only involving British Malaria which is not considered to be (or have been) a major
problem.
British malaria has never been wholly recognised as a threat due to the much greater damage it
has caused in other areas of the globe.
However, even after this issue was eradicated, some experts believe it could return to Britain as
a consequence of climate change – others believe the advancements in medicine would not
allow this to occur.
Although the illness may never return, PG Shute should forever be remembered and celebrated
for helping overcome the obstacles that British malaria brought, along with the rest of the
significant features of the Horton Arts Centre’s history.
