-
Period: 3000 BCE to 300 BCE
Ancient Egyptians
The Egyptians were the earliest to maintain accurate health records. They used magic and medicinal plants to treat disease. They called gods to heal diseases. Physicians were priests who studied medicine and surgery in temple medical schools. They believed that the body was a system of channels for air, tears, blood, urine, sperm, and feces. -
2635 BCE
Imhotep
He may have been the first physician. Physicians were priests who studied medicine and surgery in temple medical schools. -
Period: 1700 BCE to 220
Ancient Chinese
They used acupuncture to relieve pain and congestion. They used moxibustion- was a powder on the skin and burned to cause a blister- to treat disease. They began the search for medical reasons for illness. There were religious prohibitions against dissection which resulted in inadequate knowledge of body structure. They believed in the need to treat the whole body by curing the spirit and nourishing the body. -
Period: 1200 BCE to 200 BCE
Ancient Greeks
The began modern medical science by observing the human body and effects of disease. They organized a method to observe the human body. They recorded signs, symptoms and used massage, art therapy, and herbal treatment. They stressed diet and cleanliness as ways to prevent disease. They believed illness is a result of natural causes. -
Period: 753 BCE to 410
Ancient Romans
They organized medical care by caring for injured soldiers. Early hospitals were developed. They began public health and sanitation systems including aqueducts, sewers, filtering systems, and drained marshes. They believed the body was regulated by four fluids. They believed diet, exercise, and medications were used to treat disease. -
600 BCE
Alcmaeon
He identified the brain as the physiological site of the senses. -
460 BCE
Hippocrates
Is known as the Father of Medicine. He developed an organized method to observe the human body, recorded signs and symptoms of many diseases, and created a high standard of ethics, the Oath of Hippocrates, used by physicians today. -
384 BCE
Aristotle
He dissected animals and is the founder of comparative anatomy. He was a part of the ancient Greeks. -
129
Claudius Galen
He was physician that established medical beliefs. -
1578
William Harvey
He described the circulation to and from the heart -
Anton Van Leeuwenhoek
He invented the microscope. -
Gabriel Fahrenheit
He created the first mercury thermometer. -
Benjamin Franklin
Invented bifocal glasses -
Edward Jenner
He developed a vaccine for small pox. -
Rene Laennec
He invented the stethoscope. -
Florence Nightingale
She started professional education for nurses. -
Clara Barton
She was the founder of the American Red Cross -
Elizabeth Blackwell
She was the first female physician. -
Louis Pasteur
He proved microorganisms cause disease and created a vaccine for rabies -
Joseph Lister
He discovered disinfectants -
Robert Koch
He developed the culture plate to identify pathogens. -
William Roentgen
He discovered x-rays. -
Sigmund Freud
He formed the basis for psychology and psychiatry. -
Marie Curie
She isolated radium -
Sir Alexander Fleming
He discovered penicillin. -
Jonas Salk
He developed the polio vaccine.
