Elizabeth Garett Anderson

Elizabeth Garett Anderson was an English physician and advocate for women’s voting rights born in 1836. She was the first woman in Britain to become a qualified doctor in 1865 after she made efforts to do so because the British government initially did not allow women to practice medicine.

Anderson grew up in a large family with ten siblings. Her father believed that his daughter should have access to education, although society frowned upon educated women. She loved to read and learn, and was frustrated that girls were not subjects such as science and mathematics. After receiving formal education, Anderson met Elizabeth Blackwell—one of the world’s first female doctors who inspired her to become a doctor herself. Although many British schools refused to accept women at the time, she refused to give up and began working as a nurse at Middlesex Hospital. Unfortunately, her presence in the hospital was protested against, and she was forced to leave. She then applied to medical schools across Britain but was rejected because she was a woman.

In 1865, Anderson passed her examinations at the Society of Apothecaries after realising that they could not stop her from taking them if she completed her private studies, and became the first female physician. She had to attend lectures whenever she was allowed and gained practical experience through her job as a nurse. However, the Society changed its rules to prevent other women from also achieving what Anderson did. Although she became a qualified physician, hospitals still would not hire her, so she opened a dispensary for women and children, treating thousands of patients.

Elizabeth Anderson’s story stands as a powerful testament to the wonderful achievements that can be made through determination and perseverance.