How Did Robert Koch Revolutionized The Medical Field

Robert Koch revolutionized the medical field. His discovery of the bacteria causing tuberculosis gained the medical field a new sense of authority and legitimacy. Koch’s discovery debunked traditional views such as tuberculosis being genetic and a disease of the poor and immigrants. The discovery also led to the rise of two different groups: public health groups wanting to prevent tuberculosis and the sanatorium looking for cures to tuberculosis. The start of the widespread belief in bacteriology led to the aggressive promotion of public health. Americans wanted to get rid of tuberculosis from America because they saw themselves as a modernizing and sophisticated nation. People feared those with tuberculosis and viewed the infected as either

The progressive movement used tuberculosis among immigrants and the poor as rallying points to push for reform programs. Also, public health officials did their best to educate people about tuberculosis. Bacteria as the cause of disease is alarming to people, so books like The Story of Bacteria and Their Relations to Health and Disease were written to help common people understand how tuberculosis spreads and how to control the spread. Pamphlets written in multiple languages educating on tuberculosis were aimed towards immigrants since they were the main victims of the disease due to crowded living quarters. The government strictly regulated the sick and justified its extreme measures with the claim of protecting public health. Physicians were supposed to report to the Department of Public Health the address and name of people infected with tuberculosis. The government could also send inspectors to regulate the sick households, and if the family did not follow health rules, they could be separated. When an infected family moved out, the home was disinfected. Additionally, the government tried to ban the travel of the