the same time as the local smallpox hospital, Witton Isolation Hospital, was deemed unnecessary and therefore demolished by fire. Geddes, at the time, settled in Solihull. He later recounted that when "I told my friends in Edinburgh that I was going to work in infectious diseases, they thought I was a bit stupid. They said you’re mad, infectious diseases are disappearing, we have antibiotics and vaccines, why don't you do something more interesting!" Bangladesh (1973) In 1973, the Department of Health assigned Geddes as a visiting fellow with the World Health Organization (WHO) smallpox eradication effort in Bangladesh, where he spent seven weeks under the leadership of Nick Ward, travelling through villages and gaining frontline experience in smallpox vaccination. He later recalled "I saw many cases of smallpox." In October 1973, as a consequence of the oil crisis, he was called to return to England. In the same year, he was designated Birmingham's smallpox consultant. The following year, in an article in the British Medical Journal, he described signs and symptoms of smallpox and wrote that the possibility of smallpox should be considered in every patient with unexplained fever who has recently visited the five countries of the world where this disease is still endemic-namely, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Ethiopia. The likelihood of smallpox re-appearing in countries other than these five should always be remembered. Writing In 1975, Geddes became Chairman of the first editorial board of the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. In the same year, he co-edited the best-seller Control of Hospital Infection, later known as Ayliffe's Control of Healthcare-Associated Infection: A Practical Handbook. In 1976 L. P. Garrod stated in his review of the book that it made much "of how to cope with a suspected case of smallpox. As the WHO claims that this disease is on the verge of extinction, even in Bangladesh, may future editions safely omit this?" Throughout his career, Geddes authored almost 200 scientific publications covering a wide range of infectious disease topics. Antibiotics His early research included work on drug discovery and studies on the use of cephaloridine. Pertaining to trials of what became known as Augmentin, a combination of amoxicillin and clavulanic acid, he later recalled that “getting the right dose of amoxicillin proved important for efficacy and getting the right dose of clavulanic acid was key to tolerability”. In 1977, he published on the efficacies of cephamycins, including their