Public Health
Robert Koch was born during 1843. His work focused on research in the field of specifically two feared diseases: anthrax and tuberculosis. The researcher did most of his work in Germany, where anthrax in farm animals was a feared disease at the time. When Koch became the district medical officer near Berlin, he began his experiments with microbes, which led him to an investigation of anthrax, its causes and its life cycle. Koch then proved that spores originating from the anthrax microbe far exceeded its animal host in life span, and could further infect other animals coming into contact with it. After developing dyeing methods to detect germs not visible under a microscope, Koch assembled a team to search for the tuberculosis germ. Together with his team, he succeeded in May 1882.
Robert Koch was then significant in the field of medicine as well as in general public health. The methods he developed for detecting germs significantly affected the ways in which researchers after him conducted their work. Furthermore effective solutions could now be found for diseases caused by germs rather than, as was popularly believed, by "bad air." The far-reaching results of Koch's methods then could be applied to many fields of medical research rather than just to the diseases he investigated. This broad application and research then is what makes Koch's findings so significant.
Two specific principles from the code of public health ethics can be seen as embodied in Koch's work: The first is that the fundamental causes of disease are addressed and researched, rather then just the disease itself. Requirements for preventing the diseases Koch investigated could then be identified. The second principle achieved is that community health was achieved while respecting the rights of individuals in the community. Through his research, Koch was able to contribute to the health of individuals within communities in order to ensure the optimum well-being of the community as a whole.
Sources
History of Medicine: Robert Koch (2002, October). Online at http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/robert_koch.htm
Public health code of ethics. (2005). Online at http://www.apha.org/codeofethics/ethics.htm
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