Ignaz Semmelweis (1818 – 1865) was a Hungarian physician.
He noticed that there was a big difference in the mortality rates of women who gave birth in the hospital's two maternity wards. The first ward, staffed by doctors and medical students, had a significantly higher incidence of dangerous childbed fever compared to the second ward, where midwives attended to the births.
After investigating the difference, Semmelweis concluded that the high mortality rate in the first ward was due to contaminated hands of the medical staff. He hypothesized that they were carrying infectious material from autopsies to the birthing mothers, leading to infections. Semmelweis implemented a simple yet groundbreaking solution. He introduced a chlorinated solution to disinfect the hands of the medical staff before attending to births. This handwashing led to a dramatic decrease in the incidence of childbed fever in the first ward - and many lives saved. This confirmed Semmelweis's theory that hand hygiene was crucial in preventing the spread of infectious diseases.
Despite the success of his intervention, Semmelweis faced opposition and ridicule from the medical community of his time. The weight of authority stood against his teachings. His colleagues simply would not admit that they were wrong and that they were the ones responsible for the deaths by means of their unwashed hands. He addressed several open letters to professors of medicine in other countries but to little effect. His letters grew increasingly offensive, with expressions of anger, frustration, and bitterness. The years of controversy had gradually undermined his spirit, and he suffered bouts of severe depression. By 1865 his behaviour had become increasingly erratic (possibly with a contribution of dementia or syphilis too). His colleagues eventually lured him into visiting a mental institution. Upon arrival there, Semmelweis, realizing his colleagues’ intent, protested and attempted to leave but was taken in by the guards. He was beaten severely, placed under confinement, and subjected to treatments with castor oil. He died two weeks into his detention at the asylum under unclear circumstances.
His work was not appreciated during his lifetime.
However, after his death, his contributions to infection control and aseptic practices have had a lasting impact on modern medicine. He is now recognized as a pioneer in public health and is credited with laying the foundation for aseptic techniques that are standard in healthcare today.
Semmelweis reflex: The tendency to reject new evidence, new knowledge because it contradicts established norms, beliefs or paradigms.
What is the nature of the current medical system (and of society itself)? Is it really different from Semmelweis's times?
Perhaps some of the current medical interventions, dogmas and approaches that are considered normal, logical, advanced or seemingly self-evident, ones that medical professionals automatically follow, are not such at all when scrutinized a bit more closely?
Perhaps many of the diagnoses that today's conventional medicine considers incurable are in fact curable (or at least manageable better than is normally considered) when gut/microbiome/diet-aware and integrative approaches are applied?