Factors influencing medicine in the 19th century

• Britain experienced more changes in the 18th and 19th centuries than in any period before
• Changes in Britain


  • Resulted from the Industrial Revolution
  • Resulted from developments in science and technology
  • Resulted from a change in the government's attitude towards its role in the everyday lives of the population
• These changes happened slowly, but they had a revolutionary impact on medicine
• Industrial Revolution


  The process that transformed manufacturing from handmade to machine-made, mass-produced goods using water, steam and coal power transported by canal, rail and steamship. Britain was the first country to have an Industrial Revolution.
• Huge numbers of people moved from the countryside to urban centres, leaving rural jobs in farming and agriculture, and found work in factories, mills and mines
• By the end of the 19th century, most people in Britain were employed in factories and workshops
• Cities became the main centres of production. By 1900, London had a population of 4.5 million
• Cities could become overcrowded, and often the growing workforce was accommodated in poor-quality housing. The streets became filled with waste. Without fresh water and a sewerage system, disease spread easily
• By 1750, the Church and classical ideas had lost their dominant influence and scientific ideas were much more accepted
• With the growth of new technology, scientists continued to experiment and challenge old ideas. The use of new instruments (such as microscopes), chemicals and scientific equipment proved many new theories
• Further improvements in travel - such as the development of the railways - then enabled these ideas to spread quickly throughout Britain
• Laissez-faire


  Translated as 'leave well alone' or 'let the people choose'. A government policy of interfering as little as possible in social and economic policy.
• Throughout most of the 18th and 19th centuries, the government adopted a laissez-faire approach to medicine
• By the late 19th century, people began to accept that it was part of the government's role to look after the health of its people
• From this point on, the national government began to pass legislation to force local authorities to improve living conditions and prevent the spread of disease and illness
• Medicine in 18th- and 19th-century Britain saw great change, especially following the publication of Louis Pasteur’s germ theory. This led to significant changes in surgery and better prevention of disease in the late 19th century.