The Pioneer of Hand Washing
Having spent so much time washing hands prior to seeing patients and prior to scrubbing into surgery, it is hard for me to imagine a time when Hand washing was not required. Yet, in Vienna during the 1840's it was common practice for doctors to go straight from autopsies each morning on women who had died the previous day to delivering babies (and doing pelvic exams) without washing their hands. The doctors and the medical students were infecting their own patients. Up to 25% of women who delivered their babies in hospitals at this time died from childbed fever or puerperal sepsis.
Ignac Semmelweis is said to be the "savior of mothers" because he showed that deaths from puerperal fever (an infection following childbirth) at the Vienna Hospital could be reduced simply by making doctors and medical students wash their hands in a disinfectant solution before entering the maternity ward.
It was discovered later that Puerperal fever, an infection following childbirth was caused by the Streptococcus pyogenes bacteria.
Every woman who has given birth in the last century owes
a huge debt of gratitude
to Ignaz Semmelweis.
Three reasons to Admire Ignaz Semmelweis
- He was the "savior of mothers."
- He was the "prophet of bacteriology."
- He is a pioneer of antiseptic procedures.
Germs (Microorganisms)
Ignaz Semmelweis at a Glance
Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis (July 1, 1818 - August 13, 1865), also Ignac Semmelweis (born Semmelweis Ignác Fülöp) who discovered, by 1847, that the incidence of puerperal fever, also known as childbed fever could be drastically cut by use of hand washing standards in obstetrical clinics.While working at the Vienna General Hospital in Austria, Semmelweis discovered in 1847 that hand washing with chlorinated lime solutions reduced the incidence of fatal puerperal fever from about 10 percent (range 5-30 percent) to about 1-2 percent.
At the time, diseases were attributed to many different and unrelated causes. Each case was considered unique, just like a human person is unique. Semmelweis' hypothesis, that there was only one cause, that all that mattered was cleanliness, was extreme at the time, and was largely ignored, rejected or ridiculed. He was dismissed from hospital and had difficulty finding employment as a medical doctor.
Semmelweis was outraged by the indifference of the medical profession and began writing open and increasingly angry letters to prominent European obstetricians, at times denouncing them as irresponsible murderers. His contemporaries, including his wife, believed he was losing his mind and he was in 1865 committed to an asylum (mental institution). Semmelweis died there only 14 days later, possibly after being severely beaten by guards.
Semmelweis' practice only earned widespread acceptance years after his death, when Louis Pasteur developed the germ theory of disease which offered a theoretical explanation for Semmelweis' findings. Semmelweis is considered a pioneer of antiseptic procedures.
Source: Wikipedia. Ignaz Semmelweis.
Image Source: Wikimedia. Ignaz Semmelweis. Public Domain.
Hand Washing at the Bedside - 1980's
The strange story of Ignac Semmelweis in the Amazon Spotlight
The Doctors' Plague: Germs, Childbed Fever, and the Strange Story of Ignac Semmelweis (Great Discoveries)
Amazon Price: $9.86 (as of 12/30/2009)
Read about the strange story of Ignac Semmelweis.
Not recognized in his lifetime, Semmelweis's groundbreaking discovery of how childbed fever was transmitted was later validated by the work of Louis Pasteur and Joseph Lister.
Semmelweis was one of the first physicians to recognize that Hand Washing saves lives.
Hand Soaps Available from Amazon
What do you think of Ignaz Semmelweis?
Streptococcus pneumoniae Causes Childbed Fever
Puerperal fever or Childbed fever on Wikipedia
Puerperal fever (from the Latin puer, male child (boy)), also called childbed fever, can develop into puerperal sepsis, which is a serious form of septicaemia contracted by a woman during or shortly after childbirth, miscarriage or abortion. If untreated, it is life-threatening.
The most common infection causing puerperal fever is genital tract sepsis. Other types of infection that can lead to sepsis after childbirth include urinary tract infection, breast infection (mastitis) and respiratory tract infection (more common after anaesthesia due to lesions in the windpipe).
A famous victim of puerperal fever was Jane Seymour, third wife of Henry...
Childbed Fever in the Amazon Spotlight
Childbed Fever: A Scientific Biography of Ignaz Semmelweis
Amazon Price: $24.95 (as of 12/30/2009)
The Carters describe birthing conditions and medical practices in Vienna during the time when young Semmelweis began to work in a maternity clinic.
In the nineteenth century, tens of thousands of women died each year from childbed fever. Childbed fever, now called puerperal infection, continues to be a leading cause of maternal mortality, in spite of the best efforts of modern physicians.
More Online Resources on Ignaz Semmelweis
- Biography of Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis
- A Biography of Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis from Whonamedit.com
- Ignaz Semmelweis
- Information on Ignaz Semmelweis from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
- Childbed Fever: A Nineteenth Century Mystery - Case Study Collection
- Childbed Fever: A Nineteenth Century Mystery - by Christa Colyer of the University of Ontario Institute of Technology. From the Case Study Collection of the National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science.
- Childbed Fever: A Nineteenth Century Mystery - Case Teaching Notes - Case Study Collection
- Childbed Fever: A Nineteenth Century Mystery - Case Teaching Notes by Christa Colyer, University of Ontario Institute of Technology. From the Case Study Collection of the National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science.
- Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis (1818-65) - CDC Cover
- Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis (1818-65) was on the cover of CDC's Emerging Infectious Diseases Journal, Vol. 7 No. 2 Cover
- Health and Sanctity of Life: Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis
- An article on Health and Sanctity of Life: Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis from Project Creation.
- Handwashing
- An article on Handwashing by Christine L. Case, Ed.D., Microbiology Professor at Skyline in the Access Excellence Classic Collection.
Semmelweis is now regarded as a pioneer of antiseptic procedures.
The Latest on Semmelweis in the News
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E. Coli - What You Can't See Can Hurt You
E coli on Wikipedia
Escherichia coli (commonly abbreviated E. coli; , , and named after its discoverer), is a Gram negative rod-shaped bacterium that is commonly found in the lower intestine of warm-blooded organisms (endotherms). Most E. coli strains are harmless, but some, such as serotype Category: Escherichia coli O157 - :H7|O157:H7, can cause serious food poisoning in humans, and are occasionally responsible for product recalls. The harmless strains are part of the normal flora of the gut, and can benefit their hosts by producing vitamin K2, or by preventing the establishment of pathogenic bacteria within the intestine.
E. coli are not always confined to the intestine, and their ability to survive for brief periods outside the body makes them an ideal indicator organism to test environmental samples for fecal contamination. The bacteria can also be grown easily and its genetics are comparatively simple and easily-manipulated or duplicated through a process of metagenics, making it one of the best-studied prokaryotic model organisms, and an important species in biotechnology and microbiology.
E. coli was discovered by German pediatrician and bacteriologist Theodor Escherich in 1885, and is now classified as part of the Enterobacteriaceae family of gamma-proteobacteria.
Blog Posts about Semmelweis
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Wash Your Hands Often
The Latest in the blogosphere about Semmelweis
- Do you suffer from the Semmelweis Reflex? | Cliff Heegel Ph.D.
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Hand washing is now a standard antiseptic technique used by all surgeons in preparation for operations to prevent infections.
How to Wash Your Hands
- Wet your hands with clean running water and apply soap. Use warm water if it is available.
- Rub hands together to make a lather and scrub all surfaces.
- Continue rubbing hands for 20 seconds. Need a timer? Imagine singing "Happy Birthday" twice through to a friend!
- Rinse hands well under running water.
- Dry your hands using a paper towel or air dryer. If possible, use your paper towel to turn off the faucet.
How to Wash Your Hands on You Tube
Organic Hand Lotion Available on Amazon
Hand Washing Saves Lives
A Featured Lens on How to Wash Your Hands
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How to Wash Your Hands
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Hand Washing is the single most important means of preventing the spread of infection. Every year more than 164 million school days are lost due to illness. In light of the recent concerns of Swine Flu, washing your hands is one of the most important...
Six Steps of Hand Washing on YouTube
Washing Hands - Six Steps
This is a 60 second video of the proper method to wash your hands. Medical practitioners believe the most important thing you can do to keep from getting sick is to wash you hands. Not only common diseases like colds, but more serious diseases like hepatitis A, meningitis, and infectious diarrhea can be prevented by judicious hand washing. This video shows the 6 steps to washing your hands. Brought to you by SafetyTV Library, www.safetyissues.com. Life Has No Reset Button, Think Safety.
Runtime: 56
37209 views
50 Comments:
curated content from YouTube
Six Step Hand Washing Technique
- Roll up sleeves and wet hands with warm water.
- Using soap, not a hand sanitizer solution, work up a soapy lather that covers hands and forearms.
- Rub hands together for at least 20 seconds: make sure to wash palms, back of hands, between fingers, and forearms.
- Use a fingernail brush to clean under fingernails and between fingers.
- Rinse hands and forearms in warm water.
- Dry hands with single-use paper towels or cloth roller towel. Turn off the faucet with paper towels to prevent re-contamination of hands.
Note to Wash Hands
Reminder when I wash my hands with soap and clean to it under running water for 20 seconds.
If soap and clean water are not available, I can use an alcohol-based product to clean my hands
Hand Sanitizers Available on Amazon
Image Sources
Hand Washing at the Bedside - 1980's - Wikimedia. Ignaz Semmelweis Hand Washing. Public Domain.
Streptococcus pneumoniae - Cause of Puerperal Fever. Scanning Electron Micrograph of Streptococcus pneumoniae. CDC. Dr. Richard Facklam. Government Source, Public Domain.
E coli - What You Can't See Can Hurt You. University of California. E coli Research.
Wash Your Hands Often. Scotland's National Hand Hygiene Campaign. Wash Your Hands Often.
A Featured Lens on Teaching Children How to Wash Hands
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Teaching Children About Germs
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For children germs are invisible things that cause them to get sick. Remembering to do things like washing their hands or covering a cough may not come easily. Helping children understand about germs is to find ways to help them 'see' the ge...
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Reply
- herbie66 herbie66 Jun 30, 2008 @ 12:24 am
- Welcome to the 'Pregnancy and Baby' Group
( http://www.squidoo.com/groups/pregnancy-baby )
5 stars for your great lens!
Benefitting AIDS Organizations
This lens benefits the AIDS Research Alliance and the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation seeks to prevent pediatric HIV infection and to eradicate pediatric AIDS through research, advocacy, and prevention and treatment programs.
AIDS Research Alliance searches for ways to stop new HIV infections and find a cure to AIDS. They are conducting research on a larger, more diverse variety of AIDS treatments than any other community-based organization.
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