The life and work of Isidor Fischer (1868-1943)-A pioneer of the social history of medicine.

Abstract

Isidor Fischer was one of the most important medical historians of the interwar period and one of the most important Austrian medical historians in general. He wrote several classics of medical history that remain fundamental today. His Biographical Encyclopedia of Outstanding Doctors of the Last Fifty Years (1932-1933), for example, was a major achievement in medical history and, until today, no medical history library could do without it; however, his influence on the social history of medicine, a field that only began to evolve in the 1920s, has not yet been adequately recognized. This is due, among other reasons, to the fact that Fischer, who was of Jewish descent, experienced anti-Semitism throughout his career. His History of the College of Physicians was published before the Nazi takeover of Austria, but without mentioning his name. A few months later, following the Anschluss (annexation) he was forced to flee Austria. His life is paradigmatic of Austrian medical history in the interwar period. His Jewish descent, coupled with repeated accusations that he pursued an academic career in medical history to gain financial advantage for his gynecological practice, resulted in his being denied an associate professorship. An extensive study of archival materials, mainly in Viennese archives, now makes it possible for the first time to draw a comprehensive picture of Fischer's work and to explain why, despite his considerable achievements as a medical historian, Fischer was denied a career and described as an outsider of medical history in Vienna.