Percivall Pott: Father of Occupational Medicine

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The Apprentice Surgeon

Born in London in 1714, Percivall Pott was apprenticed at the age of fifteen to Edward Nourse, a senior surgeon at St Bartholomew's Hospital. For seven years he learned anatomy, surgery, and the craft of healing in one of England's foremost hospitals. He showed such exceptional ability that he rose swiftly through its ranks, eventually becoming its most celebrated surgeon.