 New England Female Medical College in 1860 | |
Other name | NEFMC |
|---|---|
| Active | 1848–1874 (merged into Boston University School of Medicine) |
| Founder | Samuel Gregory |
| Location | , , |
New England Female Medical College (NEFMC), originally Boston Female Medical College, was founded in 1848 by Samuel Gregory and was the first school to train women in the field of medicine. It merged with Boston University to become the Boston University School of Medicine in 1874.
Prior to 1847 when Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to enroll in a United States medical school by entering the Geneva Medical College. Many women, such as Harriot Kezia Hunt, had served as family physicians, but women were denied attendance at medical lectures and examinations. Blackwell set a new standard for women everywhere, helping them gain entrance into the medical world by claiming that women had something unique to offer medicine that men could not. [1]
The American Medical Education Society, formed in Boston in 1848, was created exclusively to promote the medical education of women. After the name was changed to the Female Medical Education Society to more accurately reflect the fact that the focus was specifically on the education of women, the Society was incorporated and officially recognized by the Massachusetts Legislature on April 30, 1850. [2] [3] The Society's first classes, offered under the name Boston Female Medical School, were held in the home of Boylston Medical School President Dr. Winslow Lewis. [4] The goal of the Female Medical Education Society was to establish a medical school in Boston, complete with its own teaching hospital, to teach women midwifery and nursing with the expectation that they would treat women and children. [4] By 1852, this school was called the New England Female Medical College. Even in a time of gender prejudice, the foundation of the College was accepted by many as it "provided women with a socially sanctioned position in a feminized occupation." [5]
In 1851, the Female Medical Education Society discussed a merger with the Female Medical College of Pennsylvania (later the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania or WMCP), and briefly shared faculty with the other school. The two schools also shared a debate over which could rightfully claim to be "the first" women's medical school: the WMCP received its formal charter a month before the NEFMC, but did not begin instruction until 1850, while the NEFMC was offering regular classes beginning in late 1848. Dated from the beginning of instruction, the NEFMC is widely recognized today as the first institution in the United States to offer medical education exclusively to women. [6]
The Massachusetts Legislature established a grant in 1855 of ten thousand dollars that were allocated toward college buildings. [7] Additionally, the Female Medical Education Society established a goal to build a hospital in conjunction with the college by raising one hundred thousand dollars. [8]
On May 27, 1857, by an act of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Female Medical Education Society was formally reorganized as the New England Female Medical College, with the board members of the Society now serving as Trustees of the College.
In 1863, a petition made by Trustees of the NEFMC to the City Council asked that land be provided to them near the hospital in order to establish a building that could facilitate student practices; and it was granted for a significantly low price. [9]
In 1870 the New England Female Medical College building was dedicated on a lot between East Concord and Stoughton Streets, giving the school its own home after 22 years of existence. However, the school faced growing financial constraints, and after 26 years, having granted medical degrees to 98 women, the New England Female Medical College merged with Boston University to become the co-educational Boston University School of Medicine in 1874. [6]
The main motivation for the school’s foundation was the belief that male physicians should not generally assist in childbirth. [5] Founder Samuel Gregory saw what he called "man-midwifery" as unnatural and improper and believed that women should be given formal medical education in order to become certified midwives and attend to their own sex. [5]
Gregory argued that the U.S. was the only country in the world where women were dependent on men for aid in childbirth and that male midwives caused unnecessary embarrassment to women. [10] He advocated for midwifery to become a feminine occupation exclusively in the hands of women. At the time, there was increasing support for the idea that, by dividing medical labors between the sexes (particularly giving women the role in childbirth), different departments could be more efficient and effective. [10] Gregory argued that midwifery was a simple, mechanical routine that was acceptable for women. Furthermore, that it was beneath male physicians, and that men should be happy to hand it off to women and dedicate their time to other medical fields where they would be able to employ their full mental capacity. [10]
Additionally, Gregory believed that females would be more likely to avoid using drugs and medical instruments during childbirth, and instead allow for nature to run its course while comforting patients, which he thought would lead to fewer fatalities during childbirth. [1]
Although it was seen as controversial, Gregory drew support for the establishment of the first female medical college with the help of Lemuel Shattuck, Harriet Beecher Stowe, the Female Medical Education Society, and the public. The Female Medical Education Society wanted to provide education for women to become midwives, nurses, and physicians, and the public belief was that women were well adapted for being midwives as a result of their feminine nature. [10]
The first term of classes began on November 1, 1848 with a class of twelve students from across New England, New York and Ohio [4] enrolled at Boston Female Medical College. Following the next couple of terms, the number of students from across New England and other states increased to over fifty. [11] By 1852, the college had changed its name to the New England Female Medical College in the annual reports published by the Female Medical Education Society.
On November 9, 1859 the Ladies' Medical Academy with a free clinic was established in connection with the school on Summer Street in Boston. The institution's goals were the education of interested women in medical subjects, nursing practices, midwifery, and the training of female physicians. [12] The Ladies' Medical Academy awarded the Doctor of Medicine degree to four women in 1860, and two Diplomas in Midwifery were granted. There were some forty students in all by 1861. The Ladies Medical Academy appears to have been absorbed by New England Female Medical College shortly after its founding. [13]
Throughout its 27 years, over 300 women attended classes and 98 women received doctoral degrees, [5] with fewer than five students graduating each year, on average. [6] Basic graduation requirements consisted of previous medical study, two years of attendance at NEFMC, a final thesis, and passing a final exam. [5]
The majority of the school’s budget was provided by charitable contributions allowing for many students to be given the opportunity to study there through the Massachusetts State Scholarship Fund. This grant, which was approved for a span of five years in 1854, consisted of one thousand dollars allocated 40 students’ tuitions each year. [7] All women applicants with proper preliminary educations were able to apply for scholarships to the college. [3] Without a scholarship, starting tuition was $25 per term with room and board costs of $2 per week. [4]
A list of 98 graduates of the school was published in 1905 by Harvey King. [14]
From its start in 1848 until the mid-1850s, there were two faculty members whose lesson plans focused mainly on midwifery. In later years, both the curriculum and teaching staff grew, with five to seven faculty members providing a full medical education to students comparable to that of other medical schools of the time. [5]
The 1854 Massachusetts Legislature’s grant not only provided 40 students donations for their tuitions, but the money, along with the tuition of all other students, also eventually went to the six professors that worked at the New England Female Medical College. [7]
One of the most notable faculty members was Dr. Maria Zakrzewska who believed that young women should pursue a medical degree because of “an innate interest and talent for practicing medicine as well as the love for the science of it.” [1]
Many, including some faculty members, saw NEFMC as inadequate and inferior to medical schools for male students. [16] The most prominent example of this was Gregory’s opinion that scientific instruments offered little to doctors whose job is to treat a sick individual, while others, including Zakrzewska, saw these instruments as a way to study diseases and view medicine in a scientific context. [1] Zakrzewska left the college because she disagreed with Gregory’s beliefs and insulted faculty members for being too focused on curing diseases and instead teaching students the scientific foundations of medicine. [1]
Midwifery is the health science and health profession that deals with pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period, in addition to the sexual and reproductive health of women throughout their lives. In many countries, midwifery is a medical profession. A professional in midwifery is known as a midwife.
Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States. HMS is affiliated with several teaching hospitals in the Boston area. Affiliated teaching hospitals and research institutes include Dana–Farber Cancer Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston Children's Hospital, McLean Hospital, Cambridge Health Alliance, The Baker Center for Children and Families, and Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital.
Marie Elisabeth Zakrzewska was a Polish-American physician who made her name as a pioneering female doctor in the United States. As a Berlin native, she found great interest in medicine after assisting her mother, who worked as a midwife. Best known for the establishment of the New England Hospital for Women and Children, she opened doors to many women who were interested in the medical field and provided them with hands-on learning opportunities. Within the New England Hospital, she established the first general training school for nurses in America. Her drive and perseverance made the idea of women in medicine less daunting. She also initiated the creation of the first sand gardens for children in America.
Rebecca Lee Crumpler, born Rebecca Davis,, was an American physician, nurse and author. After studying at the New England Female Medical College, in 1864 she became the first African American woman to become a doctor of medicine in the United States. Crumpler was also one of the first female physician authors in the nineteenth century. In 1883, she published A Book of Medical Discourses. The book has two parts that cover the prevention and cure of infantile bowel complaints, and the life and growth of human beings. Dedicated to nurses and mothers, it focuses on maternal and pediatric medical care and was among the first publications written by an African American on the subject of medicine.
William Smellie was a Scottish obstetrician and medical instructor who practiced and taught primarily in London. One of the first prominent male midwives in Britain, he designed an improved version of the obstetrical forceps, established safer delivery practices, and through his teaching and writing helped make obstetrics more scientifically based. He is often called the "father of British midwifery".
Elizabeth Blackwell was a British and American physician, notable as the first woman to earn a medical degree in the United States, and the first woman on the Medical Register of the General Medical Council for the United Kingdom. Blackwell played an important role in both the United States and the United Kingdom as a social reformer, and was a pioneer in promoting education for women in medicine. Her contributions remain celebrated with the Elizabeth Blackwell Medal, awarded annually to a woman who has made a significant contribution to the promotion of women in medicine.
The Edinburgh Seven were the first group of matriculated undergraduate female students at any British university. They began studying medicine at the University of Edinburgh in 1869 and, although the Court of Session ruled that they should never have been admitted, and they did not graduate or qualify as doctors, the campaign they fought gained national attention and won them many supporters, including Charles Darwin. Their campaign put the demands of women for a university education on the national political agenda, and eventually resulted in legislation to ensure that women could be licensed to practice medicine in 1876.
Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine (CAMED), formerly known as Boston University School of Medicine, is the medical school of Boston University, a private research university in Boston. It was founded in 1848. The medical school was the first institution in the world to formally educate female physicians. Originally known as the New England Female Medical College, it was subsequently renamed Boston University School of Medicine in 1873, then Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine in 2022. In 1864, it became the first medical school in the United States to award an M.D. degree to an African-American woman.
The presence of women in medicine, particularly in the practicing fields of surgery and as physicians, has been traced to the earliest of history. Women have historically had lower participation levels in medical fields compared to men with occupancy rates varying by race, socioeconomic status, and geography.
The New England Hospital for Women and Children was founded by Marie Zakrzewska on July 1, 1862. The Hospitals goal was to provide patients with competent female physicians, educate women in the study of medicine and train nurses to care for the sick. Until 1951 the hospital remained dedicated to women, it was then renamed to New England Hospital to include male patients. The hospital was renamed again to The Dimock Community Health Center in 1969. At present The Dimock Community Health Center provides a range of healthcare services including Adult & Pediatric Primary Care, Women's Healthcare and HIV/AIDS Specialty Care.
Mary Hobart was an American physician in Boston, Massachusetts at the turn of the 20th century. She specialized in obstetrics and was known for her independence and resourcefulness. Her career had parallels with that of her great-great-grandmother, Martha Ballard; but Mary Hobart sought out the medical profession by her own ambition as an early entrant. Her service was due in part to caring for the poor in hospitals.
In the United States, certified nurse midwives (CNMs) are advanced practice registered nurses in nurse midwifery, the nursing care of women during pregnancy and the postpartum period. CNMs are considered as midwives.
A direct-entry midwife is a midwife who has become credentialed without first becoming a nurse. There are direct-entry midwifery programs that prepare students to become Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs) or Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs). Certified Professional Midwives are known for being "more natural and less intervention oriented." In other words, these midwives typically work outside of the hospital setting in homes and birth centers and do not employ methods for childbirth that physicians in hospitals commonly use such as caesarean section, forceps and other types of equipment and drugs.
Dr. Samuel Gregory was the founder of the New England Female Medical College.
A midwife is a health professional who cares for mothers and newborns around childbirth, a specialization known as midwifery.
The Female Medical Society was a British social organisation established in 1862 to promote the employment of women to treat women and children, and to act as midwives. Under its aegis, the first medical college for women, the Ladies' Medical College was founded in 1864, albeit with limited aims and a short life-span.
The Ladies' Medical College was a short-lived English medical college for women, established in 1864 by the Female Medical Society. It offered courses in midwifery and diseases associated with women and children, but failed to extend its curriculum to the full scope of medical training and closed in 1873.
The British Lying-In Hospital was a maternity hospital established in London in 1749, the second such foundation in the capital.
The Evening Dispensary for Working Women and Girls was an innovative American health care service at the turn of the twentieth century. As a public dispensary, it provided "outpatient medical treatment and advice to patients, in contrast to the inpatient service provided by hospitals". It offered medical treatment for poor women, educated the public on health matters, and provided female medical students with an opportunity to learn and gain experience.
Stefania Berlinerblau or Fanny Berlin was an American anatomist and physician. She is noted for her investigations on blood circulation, which led to the demonstration of the artery-vein connections. She is also considered a pioneer in pushing for the recognition of women in the medical field. She was one of the first Jewish women who practiced surgery in the United States and was a co-founder of the New England Women's Medical Society, seven years before the acceptance of women into the Massachusetts Medical Society.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
