We're pleased to share with you a virtual exhibition about the life of Ignaz Semmelweis, the “saviour of mothers”, who discovered that the incidence of puerperal fever (childbed fever) could be drastically cut by the use of hand disinfection in obstetrical clinics.
His practice of handwashing proposed 173 years ago is now as important as ever in keeping each other safe and healthy. One of the oldest and most prestigious medical universities of Eastern Europe, the Semmelweis University in Budapest bears his name in honour of his work. He has been recognized among the 12 most influential physicians in the Hall of Immortals at the International Museum of Surgical Science in Chicago. Other statues around the world also commemorate this public health hero – the most recent one unveiled in front of the Health Hub of the University in Canberra to symbolize the importance of hand hygiene and infection prevention.
The exhibition can be accessed on the following site: https://ignazsemmelweis.blog.hu/
This website is created, operated and copyrighted by HNM Semmelweis Museum, Library and Archive of the History of Medicine, Budapest, Hungary.
