Taking a closer look at the #ToolsOfTheTrade of surgeons, we decided to pay attention to the handles of our surgical knives dating from the 19th century. Ebony, ivory and even cord had been used as handles to ensure a good grip of the knife in the hands of the surgeons. #histmed 
Let's be honest! The last thing that you might want is for that knife to slip when it is not supposed to! All jokes aside, the death rate at the surgical wards of Old St Thomas' Hospital was counted between 11% to 20%,
and many of these deaths were caused by infections rather than by the surgical procedures themselves. The materials on these handles were definitely not helping as they were not aseptic! #oldoptheatre #histmed #surgery #Victorian
You can learn more about this in person if you book yourself and some friends a Saturday #TimeBubble. Book here 👉ow.ly/AMnd50BvVwK. Every admission ticket helps support the museum as it recovers from the #Covid19 closure. 😀
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
