A Woman's Quest: the Life of Marie E. Zakrzewska, M.d.

PART I. (1829-1862)

(1829-1862)

CHAPTER PAGE

BERLIN

FOREWORD ix-xi

I. Some recollections of childhood 3-7

II. School life begins 8-15

III. First knowledge of hospitals and reading of medical books 16-19

IV. School life ends 20-25

V. Learns all details of household work; then spends most of her time reading in her father’s library; drifts into assisting her mother, who has become a trained midwife 26-34

VI. After regular course receives diploma from School for Midwives and becomes assistant teacher in the Royal Hospital Charité 35-45

VII. Is appointed Accoucheuse en chef and succeeds Dr. Schmidt as teacher of midwifery 46-54

VIII. Resigns her position 55-65

IX. Decides to go to America to help establish a woman’s hospital, her thoughts turned to Philadelphia 66-72

NEW YORK

X. Impressions and experiences on landing--Unable to go to Philadelphia or to establish a practice in New York, she builds up a business in fancy goods 73-91

XI. Social relations 92-98

XII. Meets Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell 99-106

XIII. Goes to Cleveland Medical School to acquire the title of M.D. 107-119

CLEVELAND

XIV. Difficulties encountered by women medical students in Cleveland, Philadelphia, Boston, Edinburgh (Scotland) 120-131

XV. Dr. Harriot K. Hunt’s attempt to study at Harvard Medical School and her practice in Boston 132-143

XVI. First visit to Boston--Meets many noted men and women 144-158

XVII. An interesting week-end near Cleveland--Meets Ralph Waldo Emerson--Receives the degree of M.D. 159-175

NEW YORK

XVIII. Impossible for a woman physician to rent an office or to be admitted for study to a hospital or dispensary--Visits Boston to ask money to open the New York Infirmary for Women and Children--Visit to Philadelphia determines the building of the Woman’s Hospital there 176-194

XIX. Frequent guest at the variety of social “circles” then existing in New York 195-208

XX. Opening of the New York Infirmary wards and dispensary, with Dr. Zakrzewska as resident physician and superintendent--Mobbing of the Infirmary following death of a patient 209-219

XXI. Incident of Dr. J. Marion Sims--Second mobbing of the Infirmary--First attempt at establishing a training school for nurses 220-234

BOSTON

XXII. Removes to Boston to become professor of obstetrics in the New England Female Medical College and to establish a hospital department 235-242

XXIII. Meets opposition in her attempts to elevate the standards of the college 243-258

XXIV. Her “Introductory Lecture” 259-270

XXV. Refused admission to Massachusetts Medical Society because she is a woman--Militant ostracism of women by Philadelphia County Medical Society, which tries to crush the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania--She insists medical students must be trained practically as well as theoretically--Continuing unable to elevate the standards of the college, she resigns from the faculty and the hospital is discontinued 271-287

PART II. (1862-1902)

(1862-1902)

CHAPTER PAGE

XXVI. Founding of the New England Hospital for Women and Children, with Dr. Zakrzewska as first resident and attending physician 291-298

XXVII. Letters to her first Boston student, Dr. Lucy E. Sewall 299-313

XXVIII. Two stories illustrating her broad common sense methods of studying and treating patients 314-327

XXIX. Incident of Dr. Horatio R. Storer, the only man ever appointed on the attending staff--For the first time in America the name of a woman is listed officially as specializing in surgery, Dr. Anita E. Tyng being appointed assistant surgeon 328-344

XXX. Land bought in Roxbury for new Hospital buildings--Dr. Helen Morton--Sophia Jex-Blake 345-355

XXXI. New Hospital buildings completed--First general Training School for Nurses in America definitely organized--Dr. Susan Dimock--First Hospital Social Service in America organized in connection with the Maternity 356-365

XXXII. Dr. Zakrzewska goes to Europe for her first vacation in fifteen years--Dr. C. Annette Buckel 366-372

XXXIII. Attempts by Dr. Zakrzewska and the other leading pioneer medical women to keep the educational standard for medical women from being lowered--Opening of the Woman’s Medical College of the New York Infirmary--Movement to open to women one of the great medical schools for men, with special reference to Harvard 373-387

XXXIV. Opening of the Massachusetts Medical Society to women--Dr. Zakrzewska declines to present herself a third time for admission after having been twice refused because she was a woman 388-397

XXXV. Association for the Advancement of the Medical Education of Women--Dr. Mary Putnam Jacobi--The New England Hospital establishes District Nursing in its out-practice--Dr. Zakrzewska leads another attempt to persuade Harvard to admit women to its medical school 398-415

XXXVI. Dr. Zakrzewska replies to the question, “Should Women Study Medicine?”--Her Opinion on “What’s in a Name?” 416-434

XXXVII. Johns Hopkins becomes the first great medical school in America to admit women on the same terms as men--The New England Hospital adds new buildings for the Maternity and for Nurses--Because of misbehavior of men students Columbian University of Georgetown closes its doors to women--Dr. Zakrzewska writes on “The Emancipation of Women: Will It Be a Success?” 435-446

XXXVIII. Dr. Zakrzewska’s attitude as a critic: her judgment on various details of Hospital policy 447-456

XXXIX. Her private life; her home; her friends; her ethics--Men physicians who served as consultants at the New England Hospital 457-467

XL. The New England Hospital adds new buildings for the Dispensary and for the Surgical department--Celebration of Dr. Zakrzewska’s seventieth birthday by a reception and by the naming of the original main building “The Zakrzewska Building”--Her retirement from practice--Her failing health--Her characteristic acceptance of the inevitable--Her death--Her funeral service--Her farewell message 468-478

AFTERWORD 479-482

NOTES 483-498

BIBLIOGRAPHY 499

INDEX 501-514

ILLUSTRATIONS

Portrait of Marie E. Zakrzewska, M.D. (From a photograph thought to have been taken some time in the ’60’s) Frontispiece

Second location of the New England Hospital for Women and Children, Boston Page 331

Portrait of Marie E. Zakrzewska, M.D. (From a photograph taken about 1870) 352

First buildings of the New England Hospital for Women and Children, erected 1872 (third location) 357

Portrait of Marie E. Zakrzewska, M.D. (From a photograph taken in 1896) 468

PART I. (1829-1862)

(1829-1862)

CHAPTER I

Her reason for writing autobiography, to encourage average woman to determine and decide for herself to do whatever she can--Polish-German ancestry--Childhood in Berlin--Recollection of experience when nineteen months old--Walks nine miles when twenty-six months old. (Birth to five years of age: 1829-1834.)

I am not a great personage, either through inherited qualifications or through the work that I have to show to the world; yet you may find, in reading this little sketch, that with few talents and very moderate means for developing them, I have accomplished more than many women of genius and education would have done in my place, for the reason that confidence and faith in their own powers were wanting.

And for this reason I know that this story may be of use to others, by encouraging those who timidly shrink from the field of action, though endowed with all that is necessary to enable them to come forth and do their part in life.

The fact that a woman of no extraordinary powers can make her way, by the simple determination that whatever she can do she will do, must inspire those who are fitted to do much, yet who do nothing because they are not accustomed to determine and decide for themselves.

I do not intend to weary you with details of my childhood, as I think that children are generally very uninteresting subjects of conversation to any except their parents, who naturally discover what is beautiful and attractive in them and appreciate what is said that corresponds to their own feelings. I shall therefore tell you only a few facts of this period of my life, which I think absolutely necessary to illustrate my character and nature.

I was born in Berlin, Prussia, on the 6th of September, 1829; and am the eldest of a family of five sisters and one brother.

The figures throughout the text refer to corresponding numbers in Notes, pages 483 to 498.

My early childhood passed happily, though heavy clouds of sorrow and care at times overshadowed our family circle. I was of a cheerful disposition, and was always in good humor, even when sick. I was quiet and gentle in all my amusements. My chief delight consisted in telling stories to my sister, one year younger than myself. She was always glad to listen to these products of my imagination, which were wholly original, for no stories were told me, nor had I any children’s books.

My heroes and heroines were generally distinguished for some mental peculiarity--as kind or cruel, active or indolent--which led them into all sorts of adventures till it suited my caprice to terminate their career.

In all our little affairs I took the lead, planning and directing everything; and my playmates seemed to take it for granted that it was their duty to carry out my commands.

My memory is remarkable in respect to events that occurred at this time, but it always fails to recall dates and names.

When twenty years of age, I asked my father what sort of a festival he took me to once, in company with a friend of his who had only one arm. We walked through meadows where daisies were blossoming in millions and rode in carriages that went round continually until they were wound up.

Continue reading A Woman's Quest: the Life of Marie E. Zakrzewska, M.d. free in the Wunder reader →