How it started
History
In 1923 Major General Sir Leonard Rogers, ex-Indian Medical Service, agreed to join Rev. Frank Oldrieve in forming a new association. Sir Leonard Rogers had been working on a treatment for leprosy based on chaulmoogra oil for several years and had recorded good results. On 12 July 1923, the British Empire Leprosy Relief Association (BELRA) was constituted at a meeting at the India Office, presided over by Viscount Chelmsford.
BELRA (1924-1964)
On 31 January 1924, the British Empire Leprosy Relief Association was officially founded by Rogers and Oldrieve, with the financial help of Sir Frank Carter, a Calcutta businessman and philanthropist. BELRA was inaugurated by the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII) at The Mansion House in London. The association stated its aim as "to rid the Empire of leprosy." It was set up as a medical organisation, spearheading outpatient work instead of the traditional method of (compulsory) segregation. Rogers believed, based on his experience, that it was important to treat leprosy in its earliest stages, and that the segregation system caused people to hide the illness for as long as possible. King Edward VI became the first Patron.
Lepra was founded in 1924 on two principles that, at the time, set the organisation apart. First, it acknowledged that leprosy was surrounded by superstition and myth, leading to prejudice and isolation for those affected by the disease. Lepra sought to move beyond these issues through "evidence-led" policies and practices. Second, Lepra was established as a secular charity, open to all faiths and beliefs, and claiming to favour none above another.
In 1929 Dr Robert Cochrane took over from Oldrieve and became BELRA's Medical and General Secretary.
From Wikipedia’s article on Lepra, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2