Скачать или смотреть Who was Dr. Benjamin Rush and Did He Kill George Washington

When George Washington died on December 14, 1799, some Americans immediately blamed the country’s most famous doctor, Dr. Benjamin Rush.

Dr. Benjamin Rush was not in the room when George Washington died his public support of a medical practice called bloodletting may have contributed indirectly to Washington's death. This practice consisted of draining a patient's blood in an effort to rebalance the body and combat disease.

Dr. Benjamin Rush stumbled into the practice while treating patients during the 1793 yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He came to believe that draining massive amounts of blood could cure the most aggressive diseases. Many Americans embraced Dr. Rush’s miracle cure, even though most doctors thought he was crazy. The medical community criticized Dr. Rush and forced him to resign from the College of Physicians. Dr. Rush was also blasted in the media, especially by a journalist named William Cobbett.

During the final hours of George Washington’s life, Washington attempted to combat a sever throat infection with bloodletting. His medical team ordered the removal of over 80 ounces of blood, roughly 40% of his total blood volume. This massive amount of blood loss could have contributed to, or even caused, Washington’s death.

While Benjamin Rush’s public support of bloodletting may have contributed indirectly to George Washington’s death, we do not believe Dr. Rush can be held responsible for his death. Dr. Rush was an accomplished physician and dedicated civic leader.

The content in this video was drawn from multiple sources but principally from a publication entitled “Benjamin Rush, MD: assassin or beloved healer?” by Robert L. North, M.D., and another titled “December 14, 1799: The excruciating final hours of President George Washington” by Dr. Howard Markel.

Most images are taken from the free website https://commons.wikimedia.org/.

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