Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis was a Hungarian medical doctor and scientist of German descent who was an early pioneer of antiseptic procedures, known as the 'saviour of mothers.' In 1847 he proposed hand washing with chlorinated lime solutions at Vienna General Hospital's First Obstetrical Clinic, and the maternal mortality rate dropped from 18 percent to less than 2 percent.
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Birth DateSourced to the subject's own account Death YearSourced to the subject's own account Death DateSourced to the subject's own account Connections
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In the Other Atlases
- Also in Geography Atlas: Hungary, nationality there.
- Also in Health and Wellness Atlas: Ignaz Semmelweis, the same subject.
Sources
1. Wikidata: Ignaz Semmelweis
- Wikidata Q59736, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)
- Wikidata P569 (w-bbfill-medicine3-0926)
View the Source2. Ignaz Semmelweis (Wikipedia)
WikipediaLead section (entity-description)
Ignaz Philipp Semmelweis was a Hungarian medical doctor and scientist of German descent who was an early pioneer of antiseptic procedures, known as the "saviour of mothers". ... In 1847, he proposed hand washing with chlorinated lime solutions at Vienna General Hospital's First Obstetrical Clinic, where doctors' wards had thrice the mortality of midwives' wards. The maternal mortality rate dropped from 18% to less than 2%.
Infobox (birth-date)
Born: 1818-07-01
Infobox (birth-year)
Born: 1818-07-01
Infobox (death-date)
Died: 1865-08-13
Infobox (death-year)
Died: 1865-08-13
View the Source Essays About This Entity (2 essays)
Semmelweis Is a Story Told in One Percentage, Not One Insight
Four Bacterial Discoveries, Four Fights Over Who Gets Credit
Ignaz Semmelweis, recorded as a forerunner of germ theory
Read the EssayFrequently Asked Questions
What evidence showed that Semmelweis's handwashing proposal worked?
Maternal mortality at his Vienna clinic dropped from 18 percent to under 2 percent after handwashing with chlorinated lime was adopted in 1847.
In 1847 Ignaz Semmelweis proposed hand washing with chlorinated lime solutions at Vienna General Hospital's First Obstetrical Clinic. After the practice was adopted, the maternal mortality rate at the clinic dropped from 18 percent to less than 2 percent, evidence credited with earning him the title the saviour of mothers.
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