István Száva: Egyedül a halál ellen, Ignaz Semmelweis's biography, 1963

Semmelweis' discovery directly confronted with the beliefs of science and medicine in his time. His colleagues and other medical professionals refused to accept his findings mainly because they did not find it convincing that they could be responsible for spreading infections.So he returned to Budapest in 1851 and joined St. Rokus Hospital.The continued criticism and lash out finally broke him down. By 1865, he was suffering from depression, forgetfulness and other neural complaints and was eventually committed to an asylum. He only lasted there for two weeks and died on August 13, 1865 at the age of 47.

Review from István Száva's book: On May15, 1850, Ignaz Semmelweis stepped up to the podium of the Vienna Medical Society’s lecture hall. It was a grand and ornately decorated room where some of medicine’s greatest discoveries were first announced. The evening of May 15 would hardly be different — even if those present (and many more who merely read about it) did not acknowledge Semmelweis’s marvelous discovery for several decades.

The day his term expired, Semmelweis petitioned the Viennese authorities to be made docent  of obstetrics. A docent was a private lecturer who taught students and who had access to some university facilities. At first, because of Klein's opposition, Semmelweis's petition was denied. He reapplied, but had to wait until October 10, 1850 (more than 18 months), before finally being appointed docent of 'theoretical' obstetrics. The terms refused him access to cadavers and limited him to teaching students. A few days after being notified of his appointment, Semmelweis left Vienna abruptly and returned to Pest.