Who is John Snow?

Who is John Snow?

Robert Friis (Chair, Health Sciences Department, California State University, Long Beach ) gives expert video advice on: How did John Snow impact epidemiology?; How did John Graunt change epidemiology? and more...

John Snow is very significant to the history of epidemiology because of his work on the investigation of a cholera outbreak that occurred in Soho in London during the mid 1800's. Snow was an anaesthesiologist who took an interest in epidemiology and used what is known as the 'natural experiment methodology'. He was able to show that there was an association between the impure water and cholera. This finding, although it doesn't surprise us at present, was remarkable for his time.