Background:

The 19th century was characterized by profound changes in health care. The development of hygiene standards and bacteriology reorganized health services. In Portugal, the job of bloodletters, regulated for almost four centuries, officially became extinct in 1870.

Objectives:

To understand bloodletters’ presence in society and healthcare institutions and how their gradual disappearance accompanied the professionalization process of nursing in Portugal.

Methodology:

Historical inference based on the survey and critical analysis of primary sources, such as a contemporary manual and the minutes of parliamentary sessions, and secondary sources, such as articles, books, and theses. Analyzing the data collected from these sources produced a final interpretative synthesis.

Results:

While the humoral theory persisted, bloodletting was considered a remedy for everything. However, from the end of the 18th century, the development of modern medicine led to the progressive decline of this health-related practice.

Conclusion:

The official disappearance of bloodletters coincided with the intensification of nurses’ professionalization process, particularly with the emergence of formal nursing training.

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