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How Did Elizabeth Blackwell Changed The Medical Field

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Today, when someone is interested in a rigorous, challenging, and significant career such as a career in the medical field, it is encouraged and praised. However, around the 1800s, this was not the case. Before 1849, a woman getting a degree in medicine was unheard of in the United States; the only medical jobs that were suit for women were that of a midwife or nurse. The first woman to successfully change this stigma was Elizabeth Blackwell. She was the first female to graduate from medical school in the United States and get an M.D. degree; Elizabeth permanently changed the medical field and still inspires others. Elizabeth Blackwell was born on February 3, 1821, in Bristol, England. She was born to a sugar refiner father, Samuel Blackwell, …show more content…

Three weeks after the family moved, Elizabeth’s father fell unexpectedly ill and died from biliary fever. After he died, the family was alone and impoverished leaving her mother and herself to support the family (Khalsa). To generate income, 18-year-old Elizabeth, her mother, Hannah, and her two older sisters opened The Cincinnati English and French Academy for Young Ladies. The school supported the family until Elizabeth’s younger brothers were able to work; once the boys were old enough, in 1842, they closed the school. Elizabeth continued to tutor and eventually got an invitation to teach in Henderson, Kentucky. Soon after leaving for Kentucky, Elizabeth came back due to not being able to tolerate southerners support and outlook on racism and …show more content…

In that summer, she applied to the four best medical schools in Philadelphia, but was rejected. Still determined, Elizabeth studied privately and applied to all the medical schools in Philadelphia and New York though she was not granted admission. She eventually was accepted into Geneva Medical School in New York State and started classes in November. At first, Elizabeth was accepted into the medical program as a joke by the male students and was thought to quit; however, she soon earned their respect through her hard work. In January of 1849, Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman in the United States to receive her medical degree, and graduated at the top of her class

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