Professor Dame Ida Caroline Mann, DBE,

FRCS Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons (FRCS) is a professional certification, professional qualification to practise as a senior surgeon in Republic of Ireland, Ireland or the United Kingdom. It is bestowed on an wikt:intercollegiate, ...

(6 February 1893,

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, London 18 November 1983,

Perth, Western Australia Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

)"Mann, Ida (1893–1983)." '' Dictionary of Women Worldwide: 25,000 Women Through the Ages'', edited by Anne Commire and Deborah Klezmer, vol. 2, Yorkin Publications, 2007, p. 1204. ''Gale eBooks''. Accessed 22 August 2021. was "a distinguished ophthalmologist ... equally well known for her pioneering research work on embryology and development of the eye, and on the influences of genetic and social factors on the incidence and severity of eye disease throughout the world".J. M. Tiffany, 'Mann, Dame Ida Caroline (1893–1983)', ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from History of the British Isles, British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') ...

'' (OUP, 2004) Only six other women were Fellows at this time.

Education

Mann was educated at Wycombe House School, Hampstead, London. She passed the Civil Service Girl Clerk's examination and took a job at the Post Office Savings Bank. Despite opposition from her father, she applied to study medicine at the

London School of Medicine for Women The London School of Medicine for Women (LSMW) established in 1874 was the first medical school in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Britain to train women as doctors. The patrons, vice-presidents, and members of the committee that supp ...

, the only medical school which was open to women at that time. She passed the matriculation examination in 1914, one of only eight women out of hundreds of passes. She completed her studies, 'with no trouble and intense delight', and qualified Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MB, BS) in 1920.

Early career

After qualification she had no clear idea about specialising and applied for all available positions as a houseman (a junior role for newly qualified doctors). She was appointed as the Ophthalmic House Surgeon at

St Mary's Hospital, London St Mary's Hospital is a teaching hospital in Paddington, in the City of Westminster, London, founded in 1845. Since the UK's first academic health science centre was created in 2008, it has been operated by Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust ...

, under Leslie Paton and Frank Juler. Thus began a lifelong passion for ophthalmic research and practice. During her medical studies she had developed an interest in embryology, working alongside Professor J. E. S. Frazer. Now she combined this interest with ophthalmology and wrote her thesis on the embryology of the human eye, for which she was awarded her D.Sc. in 1924.Ida Mann, ''The Chase'' (Fremantle, 1986), p. 67 To further her career she qualified in general surgery, becoming a

Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons (FRCS) is a professional certification, professional qualification to practise as a senior surgeon in Republic of Ireland, Ireland or the United Kingdom. It is bestowed on an wikt:intercollegiate, ...

in 1924. Mann was ambitious and determined to reach the top in her chosen field. To her this meant securing an honorary staff post at

Moorfields Eye Hospital Moorfields Eye Hospital is a specialist National Health Service (NHS) eye hospital in Finsbury in the London Borough of Islington in London, England run by Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Together with the UCL Institute of Ophthal ...

, London, and running her own private practice at

Harley Street Harley Street is a street in Marylebone, Central London, named after Edward Harley, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer.Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital for Women (1922); Senior Clinical Assistant to A. C. Hudson at Moorfields (1922); Pathologist and Assistant Surgeon to Ernest Lane at the Central London Ophthalmic Hospital (1925); staff appointment at the Central London Eye Hospital (1925).

Second World War

At the outbreak of war, Moorfields Eye Hospital was commandeered as a first aid post and the staff were dispersed. The premises in which Mann conducted her private practice were also closed down by the landlord. She found new premises for her own practice and then set about re-siting Moorfields. She found hospital premises in Edgware (10 miles from central London), belonging to the Priory of the Holy Sepulchre, secured the lease, moved the nursing staff there and saw the gradual return of the surgical staff. There was still a need for a central London site to treat ophthalmic emergencies, and by a mixture of bravado and sheer energy, she managed to re-occupy part of the old Moorfields Hospital on City Road, which remained operational throughout the war despite being bombed. In 1940 she undertook some personal research on the treatment of mustard gas burns of the eye, using laboratories belonging to the Imperial Cancer Research Fund at Mill Hill. It was here she met her future husband,

William Ewart Gye William Ewart Gye Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS (born William Ewart Bullock; 11 August 1889, Breaston – 14 October 1952) was a British pathologist and cancer researcher. Career After a difficult financial struggle, Bullock matriculated a ...

, the fund's director. When the results of her private research became known, she was put in charge of one of the research teams of the Chemical Defence Research Department under the Ministry of Supply. Working with her friend, Davidine Pullinger, and the biochemist, Antoinette Pirie, she worked out the entire pathology of mustard gas keratitis, which afflicted soldiers from the First World War some ten to fifteen years after they had survived a mustard gas attack. Although the team did not find a cure, they were able to alleviate symptoms through the use of contact lenses.

Oxford

During the war, honorary staff were not allowed to resign from their posts at civilian hospitals. Therefore, when Mann applied for, and was appointed to, the post of Margaret Ogilvy Reader in Ophthalmology at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

in 1941, she was obliged to combine this research and teaching post with her work at Moorfields in London, her work on the Chemical Defence Research team and her work as a private consultant in London and Oxford. During her tenure at Oxford, among other achievements, she oversaw the building of the

Nuffield Laboratory of Ophthalmology John Radcliffe Hospital (informally known as the JR or the John Radcliffe) is a large tertiary teaching hospital in Oxford, England. It forms part of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and is named after John Radcliffe, an 18th-c ...

, restarted the diploma courses for post-graduates, inaugurated the Orthoptic School and re-instituted the Oxford Ophthalmological Congress. In her own words, she had 'cleared the Augean stable' in nine months.Ida Mann, ''The Chase'' (Fremantle, 1986), pp. 127–28 Her efforts were recognised by the university in 1945 when she was given a personal professorship: the first woman to receive one at Oxford. She was Titular Professor there from January 1945 until 30 September 1947. Mann was also a Fellow of

St Hugh's College, Oxford St Hugh's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. It is located on a site on St Margaret's Road, to the north of the city centre. It was founded in 1886 by Elizabeth Wordsworth as a ...

Marriage

Mann became acquainted with

, known as Bill Gye, who was Director of the Imperial Cancer Research Fund at Mill Hill, and his wife, Elsa, during the war. After Elsa’s death from cancer, Mann and Gye married in December 1944. Mann became stepmother to her husband's three sons from his first marriage. Mann did not change her name on marriage, as the complications arising from having two Professor Gyes in the same household were easily foreseen.

Australia

Mann had first visited Australia in 1939 as the British Medical Association's representative at the 1st Annual General Meeting of the Ophthalmological Society of Australia (B.M.A.). She flew there in an Imperial Airways Flying Boat, which took a week to fly at low altitude from Southampton to Melbourne. She gave a number of papers and made the return journey "with the feeling that the gloom of Europe would soon descend, and that this brilliant, sunny and friendly land would be blotted from my memory". In 1949 she and her husband set off for Perth and Melbourne on an autumn cruise. The introduction of the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the term for the publicly funded health care, publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom: the National Health Service (England), NHS Scotland, NHS Wales, and Health and Social Care (Northern ...

in Britain had drastically changed Mann's work and she was dissatisfied with the impact on ophthalmology. Perhaps more pressingly her husband had retired from Mill Hill and was suffering from ill-health which was exacerbated by the English winters. They were immediately smitten with Perth. Mann purchased a bungalow in

Dalkeith Dalkeith ( ; , ) is a town in Midlothian, Scotland, on the River Esk. It was granted a burgh of barony in 1401 and a burgh of regality in 1541. The settlement of Dalkeith grew southwestwards from its 12th-century castle (now Dalkeith Pala ...

, resigned from Moorfields, and arranged for all their belongings to be shipped to Australia. Here they conducted experiments on cancer viruses using in-bred strains of mice to ensure consistency. She started a private practice as an ophthalmologist, which was always her insurance against economic uncertainty.Ida Mann, ''The Chase'' (Fremantle, 1986), p. 143 Bill died in 1952, leaving her bereft, of this she said: 'I was unhinged; so tired that I was almost insane'.

Trachoma research

Shortly after her husband's death Mann took an assignment reporting on the incidence of eye disease for the Western Australia Public Health Department. This assignment extended to four years and provided incontrovertible proof of endemic trachoma among the Indigenous population at an early stage when the symptoms were not yet visible. She traveled extensively throughout Australia and Oceania studying the incidence of eye disease in different races and cultures, with particular reference to the Aboriginal people living in remote communities in Western Australia and the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

, although she had a particular focus on The Kimberley region. She would often travel to these locations with the

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and found that, in these communities, up to 80% of residents were suffering from trachoma. This research produced the classic work, ''Culture, Race, Climate and Eye Disease'' (1966). Mann published extensively in the area of eye anatomy and eye disease, publishing many scientific articles and several books. She also wrote on her travels and findings relating to

trachoma Trachoma is an infectious disease caused by bacterium '' Chlamydia trachomatis''. The infection causes a roughening of the inner surface of the eyelids. This roughening can lead to pain in the eyes, breakdown of the outer surface or cornea ...

, published under her married name Ida Gye or a pseudonym, Caroline Gye. These were ''China 13'' and ''The Cockney and the Crocodile''.

Honors

*She was appointed CBE in 1950 and DBE in 1980 for services to the welfare of Aboriginal people. *She receive an honorary medical degree from the

University of Western Australia University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Crawley, Western Australia, Crawley, a suburb in the City of Perth local government area. UW ...

in 1977. *She received an honorary Doctor of Science from

Murdoch University Murdoch University is a public university in Perth, Western Australia, with campuses also in Singapore and Dubai. It began operations as the state's second university on 25 July 1973, and accepted its first undergraduate students in 1975. Its ...

in 1983. *She was inducted onto the

Victorian Honour Roll of Women The Victorian Honour Roll of Women was established in 2001 to recognise the achievements of women from the Australian state of Victoria. It was launched by The Hon. Joan Kirner AC as a joint initiative of the Centenary of Federation Victoria Comm ...

in 2001. *She was inducted into the ASCRS Ophthalmology Hall of Fame in 2007.

Death

Dame Ida Mann died at her home in

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

in 1983, aged 90.

Publications

* Ida Mann, ''The Development of the Human Eye'' (Cambridge, 1928) * Ida Mann, ''Developmental Abnormalities of the Eye'' (Cambridge, 1937); (2nd edition, 1957) * Ida Mann and

Antoinette Pirie Antoinette Pirie ( Patey; 4 October 1905 – 11 October 1991) was a British biochemist, ophthalmologist, and educator. Biography Antoinette Patey was born in Bond Street, London. Her father was a botanist and pharmacist. She was educated at Wy ...

, ''The Science of Seeing'' (Harmondsworth, 1946) * Ida Mann, ''Culture, Race, Climate and Eye Disease'' (Illinois, 1966) * Caroline Gye, ''The Cockney and the Crocodile'' (London, 1962) * Caroline Gye, ''China 13'' (London, 1964) Mann's papers are available at the

State Library of Western Australia The State Library of Western Australia is a research, education, reference and public lending library located in the Perth Cultural Centre in Perth, Western Australia. It is a portfolio agency of the Western Australia Department of Local Gover ...

Notes

External links

Ida Mann
oxfordeyeupdates.com; accessed 1 April 2014

snof.org; accessed 1 April 2014

University of Oxford website; accessed 1 April 2014 *; accessed 1 April 2014 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mann, Ida 1893 births 1983 deaths British expatriates in Australia 20th-century British writers Australian Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire British ophthalmologists People from West Hampstead Health professionals from Perth, Western Australia Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons of England Alumni of the London School of Medicine for Women Women ophthalmologists Vision scientists Women vision scientists 20th-century women scientists 20th-century Australian women scientists