London: Day 5 (06/12/2023)

Day five in the wonderful life of medicine, history, and London!

We visited the St Thomas Hospital and its original Operating Theatre (surgical operating room). Where to start with this one… It’s a lot of information that may seem gruesome for some so read ahead with caution and if you have a weak stomach for gore content then I suggest to just enjoy the pictures or read ahead (I will make a marking point for that).

• St Thomas Hospital, the oldest hospital in London with the only remaining original first operating theatre. Even here there were regulations for the operating theatre. This Operating theatre was mainly used for medical students and for them to learn more about surgeries. St Thomas Hospital was founded in the 1100s along with Guy’s Hospital in the 1720s, Royal Brompton Hospital in the 1840s, Evelina Children’s Hospital in 1869, and Harefield Hospital in 1915 (more information: https://www.guysandstthomas.nhs.uk/about-us/our-history ).

• Hygiene started to become a bigger practice in the 1860’s. This helped with the big numbers in death from septic shock and other hygiene issues (lacking of practices) at St Thomas Hospital. It wasn’t until the 1880’s that St Thomas Hospital actually started the antiseptic surgeries. It also wasn’t until January of 1847 when St Thomas Hospital started using anaesthesia surgeries.