Women In Medicine

A trailblazing, conversation-starting history of women’s health—from the earliest medical ideas about women’s illnesses to hormones and autoimmune diseases—brought together in a fascinating sweeping narrative. Elinor Cleghorn became an unwell woman ten years ago. She was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease after a long period of being told her symptoms were anything from psychosomatic to a possible pregnancy. As Elinor learned to live with her unpredictable disease she turned to history for answers, and found an enraging legacy of suffering, mystification, and misdiagnosis. In Unwell Women, Elinor Cleghorn traces the almost unbelievable history of how medicine has failed women by treating their bodies as alien and other, often to perilous effect. The result is an authoritative and groundbreaking exploration of the relationship between women and medical practice, from the "wandering womb" of Ancient Greece to the rise of witch trials across Europe, and from the dawn of hysteria as a catchall for difficult-to-diagnose disorders to the first forays into autoimmunity and the shifting understanding of hormones, menstruation, menopause, and conditions like endometriosis. Packed with character studies and case histories of women who have suffered, challenged, and rewritten medical orthodoxy—and the men who controlled their fate—this is a revolutionary examination of the relationship between women, illness, and medicine. With these case histories, Elinor pays homage to the women who suffered so strides could be made, and shows how being unwell has become normalized in society and culture, where women have long been distrusted as reliable narrators of their own bodies and pain. But the time for real change is long overdue: answers reside in the body, in the testimonies of unwell women—and their lives depend on medicine learning to listen.

A photographic tribute to women doctors, nurses and other medical professionals. Women in Medicine celebrates the women who spend their lives providing treatment, giving comfort and easing the pain of patients in hospitals and clinics across North America. The book's introduction traces the tumultuous progress of women healers from ancient Egypt until the present. Centuries before medical schools formally trained women, they learned through trial and error by caring for family members. The acceptance of women's ability to heal changed with the times -- one era's angel of mercy was another era's witch. Today, women comprise over 80 percent of all medical workers and are increasing their numbers as doctors, surgeons, researchers and professors. The striking black and white photographs capture the daily working lives of women in medicine in a variety of roles including: Midwives Nurses Technicians Therapists Physicians' Assistants Researchers. Sprinkled throughout these candid, unposed images are memorable quotes from both historic and contemporary sources.

A study of the female healers of centuries past, and how they went from respected to reviled. Witch is a powerful word with humble origins. Once used to describe an ancient British tribe known for its unique class of female physicians and priestesses, it grew into something grotesque, diabolical, and dangerous. A History of Women in Medicine reveals the untold story of forgotten female physicians, their lives, practices, and subsequent denomination as witches. Originally held in high esteem in their communities, these women used herbs and ancient psychological processes to relieve the suffering of their patients, often traveling long distances, moving from village to village. Their medical and spiritual knowledge blended the boundaries between physician and priest. These ancient healers were the antithesis of the witch figure of today; instead they were knowledgeable therapists commanding respect, gratitude, and high social status. In this pioneering work, Sinéad Spearing draws on current archeological evidence, literature, folklore, case studies, and original religious documentation to bring to life these forgotten healers. By doing so she also exposes the Church’s efforts to demonize them in the eyes of the world, leading female healers to be labeled witches and persecuted in the ensuing hysteria known today as the European witch craze.

Women in Medicine is a concise, practical resource for anyone considering a medical career, but especially women. Drawing on all the best available literature and the experience of thousands of women doctors, the book covers: getting into medical school; overcoming gender stereotypes; finding a mentor; combining parenting with a career; and maximising career development. The author also offers tips on building key professional skills, and a self-diagnostic section for readers who are preparing to begin a medical career.

This anthology of stories, poems, essays and quotations explores the duality of being both a woman and a physician.

The definitive compilation of the inspiring and educational stories of women in medicine through the ages and around the world. Women in Medicine: An Encyclopedia tells the hidden history of healing practitioners. Since ancient times, and in every human society, women have played a critical, if unheralded, role in the practice and progress of the medical arts and sciences. From the 11th century German nun Hildegarde of Bingen to early 20th century radiology pioneer Marie Curie to controversial Surgeon General Jocelyn Elders, Women in Medicine portrays the struggles, the skills, the science, and the inspiring stories of more than 200 of history's great women physicians and medical researchers. Not just a biographical compendium, Women in Medicine also includes entries on the key universities, institutes, and foundations of this illustrious history. Chock full of unique illustrations and complete with extensive bibliography and index, this one volume encyclopedia is the most comprehensive and accessible reference work on the history of women in medicine. A must buy for any library looking to round out its women's history or history of science reference shelf.

This text offers a new interpretation of the dramatic changes that occurred in women in medicine over the course of the last seventy years, starting from the 1950s when women physicians were a curiosity to the present day when their presence is accepted and their achievements are broadly acknowledged. In seven chapters arranged by decades, this book examines the seminal events that shaped what has been described as “the changing face of medicine.” Using the lived experiences of women physicians featured as vignettes throughout the narrative, the book traces the effects of the quota system for admissions, second wave feminism and Title IX legislation, the restrictions of the “glass ceiling,” and a cascade of “equity issues” in career advancement and salary to offer a new account of the roles women played in shaping the standards and the contributing to progress in the field of medicine. Women faced gender specific challenges to enter, train and practice medicine that did not abate as they strove to balance work and family. As the book shows, such challenges and the attendant institutional responses offered by medical schools and government rulings shaped how women “do” medicine differently. Women and the Practice of Medicine offers a unique interpretation of this history and accounts for the changes in social norms as well as in women’s perspectives that have made them an invaluable “new normal” in the contemporary world of medicine. This book fills a gap in the more recent history of women in medicine, much of which is written by academic historians or sociologists; this book contributes a clinician’s “on the ground” point of view. It includes a researched, structured historical narrative spanning the last 70 years, but it seeks to frame this narrative with the personal stories and accomplishments of women physicians who lived through the time in question. The book also provides an overview of how much has changed in the practice of medicine as well as a reminder of what has not changed and what needs to further evolve for women to be equitable partners in medicine as well as other professional disciplines. The book concludes with two appendices containing a questionnaire used in interviews of 40 women conducted at the start of the book project, and a summary of the qualitative findings from the semi-structured interviews.

For women, medicine came to offer not just treatment in the event of illness but the possibilities of participation in medical practise, of shaping social policies and political understandings, and of altering the biological imperatives of their bodies. The essays in this collection explore various ways in which women responded to these challenges and opportunities and sought to use the power of modernising Western medicine to further their individual and gender interests.