Elizabeth Blackwell's Life And Inspirational Life

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Elizabeth Blackwell led a very inspirational life that would influence many in the coming years. She had an extreme sense of passion for gender equality and it definitely showed through her actions over the course of her life. She embraced her father’s ideas and carried them out to the best of her abilities and was able to found her own hospital, along with schools that would begin teaching women the necessary knowledge to become physicians. She was born in Counterslip Bristol, England on February 3, 1821 and from there became one of nine children to the family of Hannah Lane and Samuel Blackwell. Her family, including herself, was very intrigued with the human rights movements that were taking place during that time. Her father had a heavy …show more content…

They were deeply against females in the medical profession because they viewed them as abortionists and could not bring themselves to believe that a woman could be just as a good of a physician as that of a man. Because of this deep rooted hate for women physicians, she had no places to practice and sometimes even had a difficult time renting a room to sleep in. Fortunately, she was able to rent a single room for her own dispensary in 1853. This enabled her to see patients at least three times a week. This dispensary was a huge success and the following year, Elizabeth was able to purchase a larger house, in which she could continue practicing (USNLM). With the assistance of Dr. Emily Blackwell (her sister) and Dr. Marie Zakrzewska (her friend), they were able to open the New York Infirmary for Women and Children in 1857. This institution would come to be known as the first American hospital staffed by women that provided training and experience for women doctors and medical care for the poor. In 1868, Elizabeth had founded a women’s medical college in New York City to help train other women who had hoped to become physicians. The educational standards placed within this college were substantially higher than those in contemporary male-dominated medical schools (NWHM). This school had earned worldwide attention, which caused Elizabeth to place an even more profound emphasis on entrance exams, curriculum, and graduate

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