14236738
Description
Flashcards by Farha Idrees, updated more than 1 year ago
|
Created by Farha Idrees
about 6 years ago
|
|
| Question | Answer |
| Who was Semmelweis? | • he was a doctor in the mid-1850s • during this time, many women in hospital died from childbed fever a few days after giving birth |
| What did he notice? | • he noticed that the number of cases of child-bed fever was much higher in one of his wards than the other • he also noticed that his students went straight from dissecting a dead body to delivering a baby without washing their hands • the women delivered by medical students and doctors rather than midwives were much more likely to die |
| What was his solution and the reaction to this? | • he insisted that his medical students wash their hands before delivering babies and immediately, few mothers died from the fever • however, other doctors were very resistant to his ideas, due to the fact that: → it went against current scientific opinion → the doctors didn't want to be blamed for so many deaths → washing hands was far too time consuming |
| What other discoveries influenced the prevention of infections? | → Louis Pasteur; showed that microorganisms caused disease ; developed vaccines against disease → Joseph Lister; used antiseptic chemicals to destroy pathogens |
| What happened as microscopes improved? | it became possible to see pathogens move clearly, convincing people that they were really there |
| What are the key ways to help prevent the spread of communicable diseases between people; between animals and people; and between plants? | 1. hygiene 2. isolation 3. vectors 4. vaccinations |
| hygiene | → simple hygiene measures are one of the most effective ways of preventing the spread of pathogens, including: • hand washing • using disinfectant • keeping raw meat away from food • coughing/sneezing into a tissue |
| isolation | • if someone has an infectious disease, they need to be kept in isolation • the fewer healthy people who come into contact with the infected person, the less likely it is that the pathogen will be passed on • this is also true of plants infected with disease • isolation is also often referred to as 'quarantine' |
| vectors | • some communicable diseases are passed on by vectors, e.g. mosquitoes carrying malaria • if the vectors are controlled/destroyed the spread of the disease can be reduced/prevented |
| vaccinations | • during vaccination, doctors introduce a small amount of a harmless form of a specific pathogen into your body • as a result, if you come into contact with the live pathogen, you will not become ill as your immune system will be prepared |
Want to create your own Flashcards for free with GoConqr? Learn more.