Introduction: A Medicinal Revolutionary
Samuel Hahnemann is one of the most hotly debated, but significantly influential figures to be found throughout the history of medicine. It was his work, that offered a truly gentle, individually tailored form of medicine to a populace, accustomed to a cruel and painful treatment practice that could do as much harm as good, that went on to establish the now well-known system of homeopathy.
His contribution to medicine, was more than a different form of treatment. It was a system which challenged, the fundamental principles of 18th and 19th Century medical treatment. During this period, treatments such as bloodletting, purgatives, or the prescription of toxins such as mercury were often used in an attempt to fight an illness but would actually drain a patients' system. Medical understanding was limited and the methods, of treatment based on convention rather than observation.
Driven by an intolerance to these methods Hahnemann formed his principles on the bases of observation, trial, and logic. He introduced the concept of "like cures like", which maintained that a substance, that can cause disease symptoms in a healthy person can treat that same illness in the sick in minuscule quantities. His focus on the individual was also unique; stating that every case must be treated as a new illness.
Another aspect of Hahnemann's principle was that of minimum dose-the smaller the quantity used, the more the body can be stimulated to heal, with minimum harm. He made observations and conducted early trials, bringing more observation to medicine, and it was through these observations, as well as attention to individuals, that helped medicine move forward in a more observational form. Above all his philosophy gave medicine a more humane, less mechanical style of treatment, taking individual need into account.
Though the theories he applied remain controversial, the effects Hahnemann had on modern day medicine is undeniable. His was the first, and still most important contribution to a more holistic, observational, individual style of treatment.
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