Bela Schick, the Hungarian-born American pediatrician, is best known for his child raising theories and his test for diphtheria. The Schick test was used to determine if a person was immune to the diphtheria toxin; if immunity was not evident, an antitoxin was given which prevented the disease. Although Schick did not isolate and identify the diphtheria bacterium, his test for diphtheria is considered one of the most important contributions to society in the twentieth century. The test and immunization were developed in 1913. There were several side effects associated with the inoculation but by 1923 a new antitoxin with fewer side effects was developed, which enabled physicians to start the practice of inoculating babies in their first year of life.

Schick was born on July 16, 1877 in Boglar, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Hungary) to Jacob Schick and Johanna Pichler Schick. He attended the Staats Gymnasium in Graz, where he received his...