Women in Medicine

Ann Preston, MD, in 1866, became the first female dean of a US-based medical school. She was determined to improve the educational opportunities of all female-students. Despite the hostility of other practitioners and educators, in 1868, female-students were allowed to attend general clinics at Philadelphia Hospital. Dr. Preston accompanied her women physicians in training to the very first clinic, witnessing this historic occasion. She dedicated her career to the care of patients and the provision of opportunities for women to study medicine. Thanks to Ann Preston, MD, the sight of women medical students studying alongside men became less unusual.

LINK: https://cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_256.html

Rebecca Lee Crumpler, MD, in 1864, became the first black woman to earn an MD degree in the United States. To add on, one of the first black authors of a medical publication called: A Book of Medical Discourses. Dr. Crumpler joined other black physicians caring for freed slaves who had no access to medical care, working with the Freedmen's Bureau, and missionary groups. Thanks to Dr. Crumpler, many African Americans had challenged the prejudice that prevented African Americans from pursuing careers in medicine.

LINK: https://cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_73.html

Susan La Flesche Picotte, MD. in 1889, became the first Native American woman to receive a medical degree before Native Americans were recognized as US citizens. As a child, Dr. Picotte witnessed a sick Indian woman die because the local white doctor wouldn't give her care. This inspired her to train as a physician so she could provide care for the people she lived with. In 1894, Dr. Picotte set up a private practice, serving both white and non-white patients. Thanks to Dr. Picotte, the hospital houses are a museum dedicated to the work and the history of the Omaha and Winnebago tribes.

LINK: https://cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_253.html

Helen Flanders Dunbar, MD, Ph.D., is an influential psychiatrist who is considered the "mother of holistic medicine." She has developed theories of psychosomatic medicine, psychobiology, and was a leader in the pastoral care movement. For example, she conducted holistic evaluations of more than 1,600 patients at the Columbia- Presbyterian Hospital that compares the relationship between personality constellation and psychosomatic disorder. Thanks to Dr. Dunbar, among her research accomplishments, her publications are considered classics.

LINK: https://www.apadivisions.org/division-35/about/heritage/helen-dunbar-biography

Virginia Apgar, MD, in 1953, created an Apgar score, the first standardized tool to evaluate the newborn. Dr. Apgar's research explained the effects of anesthesia during childbirth and advocacy on the prevention of birth defects. To add to her accomplishments, Dr. Apgar became the first woman to become a full professor at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1949. Thanks to Dr. Apgar, today, physicians are able to know that babies with low levels of blood oxygen and highly acidic blood had low Apgar Scores. Also that giving cyclopropane anesthesia to the mother was likely to result in an infant's low Apgar Score.

LINK: https://cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_12.html

The legacy of Henrietta lacks is know for a mother named Henrietta Lacks who visited the Johns Hopkins Hospital complaining of vaginal bleeding. After seeing a gynecologist, they have discovered she had cervical cancer. A sample of her cancer cells retrieved during a biopsy was sent out to a tissue lab. Dr. George Gey, prominent cancer and virus researcher, soon discover that Mrs. Lacks' cells were unlike any of the others he had ever seen. Mrs. Lacks' cells doubled every 20 to 24 hours instead of died. Thanks to Henrietta Lacks, her incredible cells nicknamed HeLa cells, are used to study the effects of toxins, drugs, hormones, and viruses on the growth of cancer cells without experimenting on humans.

LINK: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/henriettalacks/

Audrey Evans, MD, developed the Evans Staging System for neuroblastoma that occurs mainly in infants and children. She is a pioneer in the study and treatment of childhood cancers and has contributed to the care of children with cancer. She is best known for her role in creating the original Ronald McDonald House in 1974. The facility gives families of young cancer patients a place to stay while their critically ill children receive treatment. Thanks to Dr. Evans, she created a place where they could have fun and enjoy being themselves, a summer camp experience for children with cancer.

LINK: https://cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_106.html

Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, MD, was a pioneer in the study of death, dying, and grief. Dr. Ross, a Swiss-American psychiatrist, proposed that death be considered a normal passage of life. She described five phases that she believed a dying person experienced: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Thanks to Dr. Ross, she helped to ease the difficulty with which patients, families, and healthcare professionals discuss death.

LINK: https://www.biography.com/scientist/elisabeth-kubler-ross

Patricia Bath, MD, has dedicated her career as an ophthalmologist and laster scientist. One of her big accomplishments includes her invention of a new device and technique for cataract surgery. Also, she was in part of creating the field of community ophthalmology. This new discipline, grounded in public health, clinical ophthalmology, has proven to be a model for health practitioners around the world. Thanks to Dr. Bath, she restored the sight of a woman who had been blind for thirty years by implanting a keratoprosthesis.

LINK: https://cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_26.html

Antonia Novello, MD, in 1990, became the first woman and the first person of Hispanic origin to become the Surgeon General of the United States. A native of Puerto Rico suffered throughout her childhood from a medical condition that could only be corrected by surgery. To add on, Dr. Novello's favorite aunt died of kidney failure during Novello's first year of medical school. This inspired her to learn more about the disease and the factors that decide who receives a kidney transplant. She specialized in a wide range of disciplines, including nephrology, pediatrics, and public health. Thank Dr.Novello, she expanded for efforts to address the health and nutritional needs of women, and children.

LINK: https://cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_239.html