for that purpose, and is
to pay
for
being mooted, discussed, and settled is set forth in a reprint of correspondence on the subject compiled and circulated by Surgeon-General E. G. Balfour, who has kindly favored us with a copy.
so
even
prepared
It appears from this
pamphlet
been made with considerable and
women
The manner in which the matter
educated.
pupil
"The
mid wives.
the General Hospital,
was
that efforts have for some years to train women as nurses
success
remain for four months at
nurses
month at tlie Yepery Women's
one
and one month at the Native Infirmary, during which they are taught all in medicine and surgery that a nurse should know, and attend to patients botli before the doctors come and on emergencies, and are taught, also, the uses of the simpler medicines, and after 6 months' hospital work, they are examined for the nurse diploma and receive it if qualified. The diplomaed nurses then pass on to the Lying-in-hospital for instruction in midwifery, and after six months' study there are examined for their midwifery diploma, and if found qualified receive it." This reads very prettily, but the period of training
Hospital
looks
Nurses and midwives hitherto have
short.
painfully
practice by years of apprenticeship and experience. It is doubtful, in the highest degree, whether the smattering of knowledge and soupgon of experience which these women thus obtain in a few months really fit them for what they pretend to be, and what they are declared competent to be, by authority." earned their claim to
"
We should very much like to obtain some testimony regardthe practice of these women ; but this is not likely to
ing
appear in official documents, and the errors depending on ignorance and inexperience, and harm consequent thereupon,
they come under magistrate, are not likely
the
unless
cognizance
of the
coroner
or
be noted or
proclaimed. Skilful and safe nurses and midwives are not, we opine, to be manufactured in this off-hand manner, and we prefer the Calcutta " homes" under a competent supersystem of housing them in intendent, and giving them a prolonged training in a hospital to the Madras forcing plan. At the same time it is fair to state that Surgeon-General Balfour pronounces the Madras " in every way successful; and" he adds system to have been recently a Hindu gentlemen of standing in society sent for to
"
one
FEMALE MEDICAL EDUCATION IN MADRAS. Who shall hereafter dare to call the Madras presidency While universities and corporations in Great
benighted ? Britain
discussing
whether women shall be
permitted the means of studying medicines and granted the privilege of medical licenses and degrees ; while the medical council is deeply and doubtfully exercised on the subject; while the demand for female medical education is making itself feebly heard in the community and being loudly asserted by a few would-be female medicos and their friends and supporters ; while the whole thing is looked on in the light of a very doubtful experiment?doubtful as regards propriety and success?in Madras a scheme of medical education and qualification of women has been hatched, when no demand for it existed, and, at the instigation of the head of the medical department, government has authorised special arrangements for the instruction of women at the Madras College, has put the state to considerable expense are
of the
phase
training
of
"
to
veyance." From diplomaed to female doctors
has been the
but their usefulness appears their pay not permitting them to
vaccinators,"
impaired by
visit from house
to attend his wife in sickness."
female medical education
of
female
to havo been "
nurses
dipolmaed
Another
house
nurses
in a
dignified
way
in
a
con-
and midwives and femalo vaccinators
natural and easy step, and this SurgeonGeneral Balfour accordingly took. He considered it necessary,
however,
to
support
that argument, "
There
of them
was a
his
proposal by
some
kind of argument, and
is usual in India, took
as
of women in
are
100,000,000 are, by their social
India;
n
statistical form.
at least two-thirds
customs, debarred alike from receiv-
ing the visits of a medical man at their own houses, and from attending for gratuitous advice at the public hospitalsand dispensaries." women
No evidence is adduced to show that these
desire
presidency scruple
the
male
services
of
femalo
66,666,666 6
doctors.
doctors are admitted without
to zenanas when their services are
In
this
difficulty required, but
or
it
October 1, 1875
THE FEMALE MEDICAL SCHOOL AT BAEEILLY.
]
is nothing in the cormay be different in Madras ; though there respondence to prove it; nor is there the faintest attempt made to overcome the
questions
in England
to whether women
mentally
for the
which
and
study
are
agitating are
practice
of
the
fitted
public
mind and
physically
medicine,
or
whether
fitted for the purpose would come forward to offered. The principle, thus medicines were
persons
study
as
renlly
opportunities
imperfectly justified,
was
readily accepted by government,
and
only question which appears to hare been considered worthy of discussion was how to educate women in iredicine
the
with least cost to the State.
Public Instruction
pronounced
and contended that
"
It is true that the Director of the scheme
"
entirely premature,"
irrational to argue in the and the United States to India." He might it
was
highly
matter from
Europe
have saved
himself the trouble.
taken of his arguments.
No
notice
The final issue was
whatever
that,
after
was some
correspondence, a scheme, drawn up by the College, was accepted. Women are to obtain instruction in Pharmacy, Anatomy, Physiology, Medicine, Surgery, Midwifery and diseases of women in the college. They are to study all these subjects in common witli male students with the exception of Midwifery and Surgery, a few lectures in Anatomy and Physiology excepted. In the exceptional subjects they are to have separate instructions. They are to have a room set apart, for them to study with a convenient bathroom, &c., and they may, if they desire to undergo the full curriculum for the degree of M. D., also do that. It appears that six applications have been already received from six ''ladies" who are described as follows: the wife of a barrister, two daughters of a deceased captain, one widow of a master of the Doveton College, &c., and one wife and one daughter of an Honorary Surgeon. Thus the Madras Government has, by a simple "order thereon," parted the Gordian knot, on whose disentanglement some of the best intellects of Europe and America have been sorely perplexing themselves. The experiment may succeed ; we hope it will; but this we are constraininterchange Principal of
of
the Medical
ed to say, that it has been undertaken as
to its
necessity, practicability
or
on
very slender evidence
propriety.
275
to pay
for
being mooted, discussed, and settled is set forth in a reprint of correspondence on the subject compiled and circulated by Surgeon-General E. G. Balfour, who has kindly favored us with a copy.
so
even
prepared
It appears from this
pamphlet
been made with considerable and
women
The manner in which the matter
educated.
pupil
"The
mid wives.
the General Hospital,
was
that efforts have for some years to train women as nurses
success
remain for four months at
nurses
month at tlie Yepery Women's
one
and one month at the Native Infirmary, during which they are taught all in medicine and surgery that a nurse should know, and attend to patients botli before the doctors come and on emergencies, and are taught, also, the uses of the simpler medicines, and after 6 months' hospital work, they are examined for the nurse diploma and receive it if qualified. The diplomaed nurses then pass on to the Lying-in-hospital for instruction in midwifery, and after six months' study there are examined for their midwifery diploma, and if found qualified receive it." This reads very prettily, but the period of training
Hospital
looks
Nurses and midwives hitherto have
short.
painfully
practice by years of apprenticeship and experience. It is doubtful, in the highest degree, whether the smattering of knowledge and soupgon of experience which these women thus obtain in a few months really fit them for what they pretend to be, and what they are declared competent to be, by authority." earned their claim to
"
We should very much like to obtain some testimony regardthe practice of these women ; but this is not likely to
ing
appear in official documents, and the errors depending on ignorance and inexperience, and harm consequent thereupon,
they come under magistrate, are not likely
the
unless
cognizance
of the
coroner
or
be noted or
proclaimed. Skilful and safe nurses and midwives are not, we opine, to be manufactured in this off-hand manner, and we prefer the Calcutta " homes" under a competent supersystem of housing them in intendent, and giving them a prolonged training in a hospital to the Madras forcing plan. At the same time it is fair to state that Surgeon-General Balfour pronounces the Madras " in every way successful; and" he adds system to have been recently a Hindu gentlemen of standing in society sent for to
"
one
FEMALE MEDICAL EDUCATION IN MADRAS. Who shall hereafter dare to call the Madras presidency While universities and corporations in Great
benighted ? Britain
discussing
whether women shall be
permitted the means of studying medicines and granted the privilege of medical licenses and degrees ; while the medical council is deeply and doubtfully exercised on the subject; while the demand for female medical education is making itself feebly heard in the community and being loudly asserted by a few would-be female medicos and their friends and supporters ; while the whole thing is looked on in the light of a very doubtful experiment?doubtful as regards propriety and success?in Madras a scheme of medical education and qualification of women has been hatched, when no demand for it existed, and, at the instigation of the head of the medical department, government has authorised special arrangements for the instruction of women at the Madras College, has put the state to considerable expense are
of the
phase
training
of
"
to
veyance." From diplomaed to female doctors
has been the
but their usefulness appears their pay not permitting them to
vaccinators,"
impaired by
visit from house
to attend his wife in sickness."
female medical education
of
female
to havo been "
nurses
dipolmaed
Another
house
nurses
in a
dignified
way
in
a
con-
and midwives and femalo vaccinators
natural and easy step, and this SurgeonGeneral Balfour accordingly took. He considered it necessary,
however,
to
support
that argument, "
There
of them
was a
his
proposal by
some
kind of argument, and
is usual in India, took
as
of women in
are
100,000,000 are, by their social
India;
n
statistical form.
at least two-thirds
customs, debarred alike from receiv-
ing the visits of a medical man at their own houses, and from attending for gratuitous advice at the public hospitalsand dispensaries." women
No evidence is adduced to show that these
desire
presidency scruple
the
male
services
of
femalo
66,666,666 6
doctors.
doctors are admitted without
to zenanas when their services are
In
this
difficulty required, but
or
it
October 1, 1875
THE FEMALE MEDICAL SCHOOL AT BAEEILLY.
]
is nothing in the cormay be different in Madras ; though there respondence to prove it; nor is there the faintest attempt made to overcome the
questions
in England
to whether women
mentally
for the
which
and
study
are
agitating are
practice
of
the
fitted
public
mind and
physically
medicine,
or
whether
fitted for the purpose would come forward to offered. The principle, thus medicines were
persons
study
as
renlly
opportunities
imperfectly justified,
was
readily accepted by government,
and
only question which appears to hare been considered worthy of discussion was how to educate women in iredicine
the
with least cost to the State.
Public Instruction
pronounced
and contended that
"
It is true that the Director of the scheme
"
entirely premature,"
irrational to argue in the and the United States to India." He might it
was
highly
matter from
Europe
have saved
himself the trouble.
taken of his arguments.
No
notice
The final issue was
whatever
that,
after
was some
correspondence, a scheme, drawn up by the College, was accepted. Women are to obtain instruction in Pharmacy, Anatomy, Physiology, Medicine, Surgery, Midwifery and diseases of women in the college. They are to study all these subjects in common witli male students with the exception of Midwifery and Surgery, a few lectures in Anatomy and Physiology excepted. In the exceptional subjects they are to have separate instructions. They are to have a room set apart, for them to study with a convenient bathroom, &c., and they may, if they desire to undergo the full curriculum for the degree of M. D., also do that. It appears that six applications have been already received from six ''ladies" who are described as follows: the wife of a barrister, two daughters of a deceased captain, one widow of a master of the Doveton College, &c., and one wife and one daughter of an Honorary Surgeon. Thus the Madras Government has, by a simple "order thereon," parted the Gordian knot, on whose disentanglement some of the best intellects of Europe and America have been sorely perplexing themselves. The experiment may succeed ; we hope it will; but this we are constraininterchange Principal of
of
the Medical
ed to say, that it has been undertaken as
to its
necessity, practicability
or
on
very slender evidence
propriety.
275
