Alexander Wood (surgeon)

Alexander Wood (1725 to 1807) was a Scottish surgeon in Edinburgh, known to his contemporaries as Lang Sandy Wood because of his lean, lanky build. Born at Restalrig, he studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh and first practised at Musselburgh. He became a Freeman of the Incorporation of Surgeons of Edinburgh in 1756, joined the staff of the new Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, and served two years as Deacon of the Incorporation from 1762. He worked in practice with the surgeons John Rattray and Charles Congleton, and his pupils included John Bell and Sir Alexander Morison. His source records that he made no known contribution to the advancement of surgical knowledge; his reputation rested on his warmth and standing in Enlightenment Edinburgh, where he founded two convivial clubs, was a member of the Aesculapian Club and was a founding member of the Harveian Society of Edinburgh. He treated the poet Robert Burns for a leg injury in 1787 and became his friend. This entry records what is held about him as a historical practitioner, never medical advice.