Harald Hirschsprung is remembered in medicine for work that altered practice rather than merely argument.
The record lists Harald Hirschsprung as Danish physician (1830-1916).
Harald Hirschsprung was born at Copenhagen in 1830. His recorded nationality is Denmark.
Anaesthesia, antisepsis and germ theory arrived within fifty years and made modern surgery possible for the first time.
Most medical progress is invisible: it shows up as an illness that no longer kills anyone.
Recognition followed: Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog (1890) and commander of the Order of the Dannebrog (1900).
That the work was done from Denmark matters: hospitals, training and research funding are unevenly distributed, and they decide which questions can be asked.
Harald Hirschsprung died in 1916, aged 86. What survives is the change in practice, which is how a medical life is actually measured.
Achievements
- Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog — 1890
- commander of the Order of the Dannebrog — 1900
