OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT SEMMELWEIS SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL 80 12th STREET, SUITE #307 WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA 26003 www.semmelweis.org 724-678-2648 “Supporting Fair and Proper Due Process in Medical Peer Review without Compromising Medical Ethics or Patient Care” PRESS RELEASE In 1847, Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis pioneered the prevention of transmission of disease by washing hands (Prophylaxis), reducing the mortality rate due to Puerperal Fever from 12% to almost ZERO by enforcing the washing of hands with chlorinated lime. At the time, Dr. Semmelweis' hypothesis was considered extreme and was widely rejected and ridiculed. When he refused to compromise his beliefs, the hospital that...