Semmelweis tells doctors to wash their hands
Handwashing saved mothers, and his colleagues took offence
In a Vienna hospital, mothers on the doctors' ward died of fever far more often than on the midwives'. Ignaz Semmelweis made doctors wash in chlorinated lime after autopsies and deaths fell to 1–2%. Yet many colleagues rejected the idea that a gentleman's hands could carry disease.
Wikipedia (Russian) · Wikipedia (English) · 19th century
Did you know
Psychology has a 'Semmelweis reflex': the tendency to reject new evidence that clashes with established beliefs. It is named after the doctor whose call for handwashing saved mothers' lives and was ridiculed by his peers. Share →
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Alive at the time
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