Today in Medical History

January 23 in Medical History

21 entries: discoveries, epidemics, drugs and the people who shaped medicine.

Observed today

1
  1. Christian feast day: — Marianne of MolokaiHealth observanceWikipedia

Events

11
  1. 1793Humane Society of Philadelphia is organized (first aid society)Healthcare institution / ProfessionOnThisDay
  2. 1849First Woman Earns US Medical DegreeElizabeth Blackwell becomes the first woman in the US to earn a medical degree, graduating from New York's Geneva Medical CollegeHealthcare institution / ProfessionWikipedia
  3. 1889First Non-segregated US HospitalDaniel Hale Williams forms the Provident Hospital in Chicago, the first non-segregated hospital in the USHealthcare institution / ProfessionOnThisDay
  4. 1922The first successful treatment with insulin is given to 14-year-old diabetic Leonard Thompson.Drug / VaccineWikipedia
  5. 1983Cerebral Palsy telethon raises $14.7 millionHealthcare institution / ProfessionOnThisDay
  6. 2016Zika virus outbreak in Brazil prompts Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador and Jamaica to recommend women delay pregnancies for up to 2 yearsDisease / EpidemicOnThisDay
  7. 2018Chinese researchers report they have cloned two monkeys, using the same technology as Dolly the SheepDiscovery / ResearchOnThisDay
  8. 2018Diamond Retires from TouringAmerican singer-songwriter Neil Diamond abruptly retires from touring after being diagnosed with Parkinson's DiseaseNotable person's healthOnThisDay
  9. 2020China locks down the city of Wuhan and its 9 million people in a belated but ultimately successful effort to control the city's COVID-19 outbreakDisease / EpidemicOnThisDay
  10. 2025Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family who own the company agree to pay $7.4 billion to settle new lawsuits over the harm caused by the opioid epidemicPublic health / PolicyOnThisDay
  11. 2025Trump Pardons ActivistsUS President Donald Trump issues pardons to 23 anti-abortion activists convicted of illegally blocking access to clinicsPublic health / PolicyOnThisDay

Born on this day

3
  1. 1918Gertrude B. ElionAmerican biochemist and drug researcher who developed groundbreaking leukemia and herpes drug treatments (Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1988), born in New York City (1918-1999)Medical scientistWikipedia
  2. 1939Ed RobertsAmerican activist for disability rights, born in San Mateo, California (d. 1995)Health leader / ActivistWikipedia
  3. 1976Alex ShafferAmerican skierNurse / MidwifeWikipedia

Died on this day

6
  1. 1893William PriceWelsh physician, Chartist, and neo-Druid (born 1800)Physician / SurgeonWikipedia
  2. 1923Max NordauAustrian author, physician, and Zionist leader, dies at 73Physician / SurgeonWikipedia
  3. 1988Charles Glen KingAmerican biochemist and pioneer of nutrition research who isolated vitamin C, dies at 91Medical scientistWikipedia
  4. 2019Norman OrentreichAmerican dermatologist known as "the father of modern hair transplantation", dies at 96Physician / SurgeonOnThisDay
  5. 2021Peter HarperBritish medical geneticist known for his work on myotonic dystrophy, dies at 81Medical scientistOnThisDay
  6. 2022Marie-Claire ChevalierFrench nurse and abortion rights activist (1972 Bobigny trial), dies of cancer at 66Nurse / MidwifeOnThisDay

Sources: onthisday.com and Wikipedia's “On this day” (text under CC BY-SA 4.0), screened for medical relevance. Each entry links to its source.