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History
Medicine has been taught at Oxford since the thirteenth century, and for several hundred years Oxford has been at the forefront of medical education. Many leading scientists and clinicians have made important discoveries here, among them William Harvey, who discovered the way blood circulates around the body, Thomas Willis, who is regarded as the founder of modern clinical neuroscience and one of the great physicians of the seventeenth century, and Sir Christopher Wren, better known for his architectural achievements, but who made a number of detailed anatomical drawings whilst at Oxford.
Much of the pioneering trials of penicillin took place at the Radcliffe Infirmary| in Oxford, and on 14 March 1942 John Bumstead and Orvan Hess became the first team in the world to treat a patient successfully using penicillin.
Today, Oxford retains its outstanding international reputation for progressive research, leading to innovative improvements in patient care.