And that’s a good thing because it shows how much progress the world has made against polio, a terrible and now largely forgotten disease. 

This metal tank is an iron lung, a mechanical respirator that saved the lives of thousands of polio victims. 

Polio attacks the body’s nervous system, crippling patients. In the worst cases, the disease paralyzes their respiratory muscles and makes it difficult for them to breathe, sometimes resulting in death.  

Using changes in air pressure, the iron lung pulls air in and out of a patient’s lungs, allowing them to breathe and stay alive. 

During the height of the polio epidemic in the U.S. in the 1940s and 1950s, rows of iron lungs filled hospital wards to treat thousands of polio patients, most of them children.

And that’s a good thing because it shows how much progress the world has made against polio, a terrible and now largely forgotten disease. 

This metal tank is an iron lung, a mechanical respirator that saved the lives of thousands of polio victims. 

Polio attacks the body’s nervous system, crippling patients. In the worst cases, the disease paralyzes their respiratory muscles and makes it difficult for them to breathe, sometimes resulting in death.  

Using changes in air pressure, the iron lung pulls air in and out of a patient’s lungs, allowing them to breathe and stay alive. 

During the height of the polio epidemic in the U.S. in the 1940s and 1950s, rows of iron lungs filled hospital wards to treat thousands of polio patients, most of them children.

To address these challenges, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative has adjusted its strategy, including by strengthening its integration with other health programs, improving vaccination coverage and the overall health of local communities. The knowledge, skills, and infrastructure built to end polio and all the suffering it causes will also be used for detecting and responding to other major health emergencies. That’s a win-win investment. 

But it will need continued support and resources, including from historical champions like the United States, United Kingdom, and United Arab Emirates, to deliver on these promises. 

The iron lung was one of the greatest tools to fight against one of the worst outcomes of polio. 

Today, it’s the iron will of the thousands of polio workers and their supporters who are committed to finishing the job. 

Thanks to the commitment of Rotary and other partners, as well as the dedicated political leadership of polio-affected countries, I’m confident that we can create a world where no child will ever be paralyzed by polio again.