Thank you for your careful reading. I heard a Dr. Semmelweis story on NPR. Their team said that it took years for physicians to take up the germ theory of disease. Hence, dirty hands.

Midwives on the other hand, having not handled a lot of diseased people and corpses, and often involved in cooking/cleaning, routinely washed hands. As to the heartbeat, I looked at a few sources, and could not find an absolute time. I think you found a more accurate description.

Thanks so much for reading, and caring