Conferring the title of “father” (or “founder”) on persons perceived to have been
singularly responsible for key advances in medicine has been a long tradition in the
profession. Those anointed as such include the likes of Sushruta as the father of plastic surgery, Vesalius as the father of human anatomy, Paracelsus as the father of toxicology, Florence Nightingale as the founder of modern nursing, and so on. Generally, selections have been made by popular acclamation,
based on credit for contributions that, on careful examination, might just as appropriately
have been shared with others. The following 4 examples illustrate just how tenuous
the assigning of priority to particular individuals for critical advances in medicine
can be.
To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
Purchase one-time access:
Academic & Personal: 24 hour online accessCorporate R&D Professionals: 24 hour online accessOne-time access price info
- For academic or personal research use, select 'Academic and Personal'
- For corporate R&D use, select 'Corporate R&D Professionals'
Subscribe:
Subscribe to The American Journal of MedicineAlready a print subscriber? Claim online access
Already an online subscriber? Sign in
Register: Create an account
Institutional Access: Sign in to ScienceDirect
References
- Hippocrates (translated by M.B. DeBevoise).The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore1999: 10, 56-7 (translated by M.B. DeBevoise)
- On the shoulders of giants – from Jenner's cowpox to mRNA Covid vaccines.N Engl J Med. 2021; 384: 1081-1083
- Benjamin Jesty: the first vaccinator revealed.Lancet. 2006; 368: 2202
- The earliest mentions of inoculation.In: Science and civilization in China. Vol. 6: Biology and Biological Technology. Part 6. Medicine. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge1999: 134-139
- Rabies risk among travellers.CMAJ. 2008; 178: 567
- Pasteur, roux, and rabies: scientific versus clinical mentalities.J Hist Med Allied Sci. 1990; 45: 341-365
- Rosalind Franklin and the discovery of the structure of DNA.Nature. 1968; 219: 808-844
Article Info
Publication History
Published online: September 22, 2021
Footnotes
Funding: None.
Conflicts of Interest: None.
Authorship: The sole author is responsible for all content.
Identification
Copyright
© 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
