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WOMEN IN
MEDICINE
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field hospitals. She actively supported women s rights, family plan- prevented vivisection in the Woman s Medical School established
ning and what she called Christian socialism. She was anti-vivisec- in London by her and Dr. Jex-Blake whom she had helped train.
tionist. She also mentored and helped other women physicians,
including Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, the first woman doctor in Nevertheless, Dr. Blackwell was one of the pioneer women doctors
England and others in the United States. who in the 19th Century tore down barriers to women s education
in sciences. With her on the front line were Elizabeth Garrett An-
Eventually she left the practice of medicine to dedicate herself derson in England and Sophie Jex-Blake. One should also mention
to writing papers, books and thesis on the different causes that James Miranda Barry, who was born a woman but lived all her life
she supported. She traveled extensively and kept correspondence posing as a man, only being discovered at autopsy after her death.
with a number of people. In spite of all this, she had few close
friends. She was often critical of other people’s work, like those Today, it is estimated that 50 percent of physicians in the
of Florence Nightingale, her past associate, Marie Zarkszewsi and United Kingdom are women. Probably, the same estimate applies,
even her sister Emily. or will soon apply, to the United States as well. To the best of our
knowledge, they are able to have all the babies they wish to have,
In 1856, she adopted an Irish orphan, Kitty Barry, who became a showing that her studying medicine did not damage their uterii.
household companion, part daughter, part servant, who stayed with And of course they do not get hysterical even when told a bad
her until her death in 1910 in England. Kitty died in 1930 and re- joke and they are not prone to fainting spells. So much for con-
quested her ashes to be buried alongside Elizabeth Blackwell s tomb. ventional wisdom.
Dr. Blackwell was strong-willed and at times uncompromising to Dr. Jaime Pankowsky, MD is a general surgeon in San Antonio and
an extreme. She never accepted the fact that diseases could be caused a member of the BCMS Communications Committee.
by bacteria, declaring they were spiritual failures instead. She also
16 San Antonio Medicine • October 2016
