About The Book

Worthy and Expert traces the history of the Royal College of surgeons of Edinburgh from its formation in 1505 to the present day. The first part of the book examines the role of the Incorporation of Surgeons and Barbers of Edinburgh, as the College was called when it was formed, within Scotland’s medieval society. The book goes on to discuss the development of modern surgery in the 18th and 19th centuries and the role in that development played by the College and by surgical education in Edinburgh. The third section of the book describes how the College has changed from a somewhat parochial Edinburgh institution in previous centuries into an international surgical organisation with over 30,000 members and fellows in 130 countries.