Abby Connolly
When you were in school, did you ever get the chance to learn the story of Elizabeth Garrett Anderson? If not, now is your chance to learn about a woman who achieved a lot of firsts.
Born in London, England, in 1836, Elizabeth was born into a family that supported her need for education. She was home-schooled until she went to a boarding school for girls as a teenager.
At the age of 23, when she was finished with school, she met Elizabeth Blackwell. You may recognize this Elizabeth’s name, as she was the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States.
After she met Elizabeth Blackwell, she was inspired to become a doctor. However, getting her medical degree was a long and challenging process.
One year after meeting Elizabeth Blackwell, Elizabeth became a surgery nurse at Middlesex Hospital in London, where she learned so much about what it takes to be a doctor.
As she tried to get into medical school, she learned as much as she could during her time as a nurse and had opportunities to work in the outpatient clinic. She was also able to sit in on her first operation.
However, she still felt alienated as she continued to get rejected from medical schools. To further her education, Elizabeth decided to take private lessons in subjects like anatomy and physics in the evenings while continuing to be a great nurse.
She got her degrees in anatomy and physiology and found hope in the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries, which admitted her in 1862.
By 1865, after becoming the first woman to take their exam, she received her license to practice medicine.
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