1668-1738

Dutch Physician and Chemist

The Dutch physician and professor of medicine Hermann Boerhaave was widely known and revered for his exemplary role in teaching clinical, or "bedside," medicine. Although Boerhaave is not associated with any major discoveries in medicine or chemistry, his reputation as a teacher and writer was so great that his contemporaries considered him comparable to Sir Isaac Newton. He was considered the greatest clinical teacher of his time and the most eminent of European physicians.

Boerhaave, the son of a minister, was born in Verhout, Holland. He was expected to follow in his father's profession, but he became fascinated by chemistry and decided on a career in medicine. In 1684 he became a student at the University of Leiden and took courses in chemistry, botany, medicine, philosophy, languages, and philosophy. He graduated in natural philosophy in 1687. After qualifying in medicine at the University...