The home care in its historical roots. A case study: Alicante in the 18th century

• Main Authors: Eduardo Bueno Vergara, Enrique Perdiguero Gil
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Centro Internacional Virtual de Investigación en Nutrición (CIVIN) 2017-01-01
• Series: Hospital a Domicilio
• Subjects: Historia de la Medicina; Historia Moderna 1601-; Historia del Siglo XVIII; Consulta Médica a Domicilio; Asistencia Médica; Administración Municipal; Salud Pública; Médicos
• Online Access: https://revistahad.eu/index.php/revistahad/article/view/7

This paper analyses the role played by physicians in fighting the disease in the city of Alicante during the 18th century. The local government hired three physicians to take care of the population. The municipal hiring of these healers was a common practice, through which doctors acquired a series of responsibilities, being the main one the home care. However, the presence of these three titular doctors was not sufficient to attend the entire population, something that was reflected in the constant protests of the neighbours by the absence of the doctors. In addition to those hired, there were also other physicians who practised in the city on their own. In this paper, we compare the experiences and circumstances that characterised the case of the city of Alicante in the 18th century18th century with those of other populations that have been object of study and we find some differences that must be explained from the context of a specific socio-economic context.