Dr. William Halsted

(JHMI) - ... William H. Welch invited Halsted in 1886 to come to Baltimore to join him in the newly formed pathology laboratory. Halsted and Franklin P. Mall spent the three years before the opening of the Johns Hopkins Hospital perfecting techniques for intestinal suture and wound healing in dogs. It was during this concentrated period of research that the concept for the Halsted School of Surgery evolved. Halsted's methods consisted of strict aseptic technique, gentle handling of tissue, use of the finest silk suture material, small stitches and low tension on the tissue, and complete closure of wounds whenever possible. These basic procedures had a far-reaching effect on the practice of surgery, making it safer and more effective than it had been previously. continued

Painting: "The Four Doctors" by John Singer Sargent (Halsted is the one standing).