Profilaktyka przeciwepidemiczna w Galicji na przełomie XIX i XX wieku

Abstract

The turn of the 20th century brought revolutionary solutions in the fight against diseases, which decimated European (and Galician) cities in the mid-19th century. The scale of the observed revolution can be confirmed by the popularity of the opinion proposed by Karl Rokitansky, an anatomicopathologist, and his students, that it is best not to do anything while fighting an illness, in the pre-constitutional Austria. During the Austrian- Hungarian Empire period, the view in question was radically changed, which was influenced by several factors. Among the most important achievements in this field, developing system mechanisms allowing for early reaction to emergent hotbeds of contagious diseases should be definitely mentioned. A significant role in the anti-epidemic policy in the autonomic period was fulfilled by citizens, who gathered in “non-political” associations. It was quite common that such social organizations created the first frontline in the broadly-understood health prevention and in fighting the consequences of dangerous contagious diseases.