The Tribulations of Female Doctors in History, by Diane Scott Lewis

 

"Ring of Stone (former title) is an entertaining read, combining accurate historical details with a fast-paced plot and a number of credible characters." Historical Novel Society

A young woman strives to be a doctor in eighteenth century England, but discovers evil village secrets instead.

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When writing this novel, I dug deep into doctors in the eighteenth century. I found that women were excluded from formal study and earning degrees or licenses in England and America. Although, in other countries this wasn't the case.

Recently, I read a non-fiction book on Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to earn a medical degree in America in 1847. She fought hard to get into medical school with several rejections. Her entrance into one small college was considered a joke, and no one thought she would succeed. But they ended up shocked by her tenacity and intelligence.

Elizabeth went on to found a woman's medical college, because the major colleges and universities balked at allowing women to attend. That finally changed in the later decades.

In reading about the Victorian medical practices, I was surprised that little had changed since the eighteenth century. Blood-letting, cupping, and other bizarre treatments were still common.

Elizabeth's sister, Emily, also studied to be a doctor, (at her sister's insistence) and she eventually became known as a skilled surgeon. Emily had the people skills that the rigid Elizabeth lacked.

The sisters were still regulated to treating women's problems, as in childbirth and other gynecologic issues. And much of their work was for poor women in underserved communities.

My heroine, Rose, longs to study as a physician, and comes up against a brick wall in a male dominated occupation. It's unfortunate that sixty years later, women were still being denied access to medical degrees.

Rose meets a female doctor who only succeeded by subterfuge. And in reality other women practiced as doctoresses, attended classes and lectures, but without any degree or license.

Rose studies the important medical tombs of the era to keep up on practices, such as the famous physician William Hunter, 1718-1783. I too read his works through library loans. His most famous being, The anatomy of the human gravid uterus exhibited in figures (1774). 

Men believed that women couldn't handle the gore of surgery, or master the intricacies of learning medicine. Women were fickle and flighty, so the men in charge insisted.

Even as a child, I thought it strange when I was seen by my first female doctor. The doctors on TV were always men. Prejudices run deep. 

Diane lives in Western Pennsylvania with her husband and one naughty dachshund.

To find out more about her books: DianeScottLewis