Christine Mary Murrell (18 October 1874 – 18 October 1933) was an English

medical doctor A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

. In 1924, she became the first woman elected to the

British Medical Association The British Medical Association (BMA) is a registered trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. The association does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The association's headquar ...

's Central Council. However, due to her untimely death, she never took seat leaving the first membership to

Hilda Lloyd Dr. Dame Hilda Nora Lloyd, DBE (née Shufflebotham; 1891–1982) was a British physician and surgeon. She was the first woman to be elected (in 1949) as president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Born in Birmingham, the ...

in 1933.

Early life and education

Murrell was born in 1874 in Clapham, London. Her parents were Charles Murrell, a coal merchant, and Alice Elizabeth Rains. She attended Clapham High School for Girls and the London School of Medicine for Women, receiving an

MBBS Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

in 1899. She spent the beginning of her career in various positions in Northumberland and Liverpool before returning to London to work at the

Royal Free Hospital The Royal Free Hospital (also known simply as the Royal Free) is a major teaching hospital in the Hampstead area of the London Borough of Camden. The hospital is part of the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, which also runs services at Barn ...

, where she was only the second woman to serve as a house physician. In 1903, she established a private practice in

Bayswater Bayswater is an area within the City of Westminster in West London. It is a built-up district with a population density of 17,500 per square kilometre, and is located between Kensington Gardens to the south, Paddington to the north-east, and ...

with her friend Elizabeth Honor Bone. Murrell received an MD in psychology and mental diseases from the University of London in 1905. From 1907, she led an infant welfare clinic run by the St Marylebone Health Society at Lisson Grove for 18 years.

Career

Murrell was also an activist for women's rights, and was involved in the women's suffrage movement before the First World War. During the war, she served in and became chair of the

Women's Emergency Corps The Women's Emergency Corps was a service organisation founded in 1914 by Evelina Haverfield, Decima Moore, and the Women's Social and Political Union to contribute to the war effort of the United Kingdom in World War I. The corps was intended t ...

. She gave public lectures on women's health for 20 years at the London County Council, and in 1923 she published a series of lectures under the title ''Womanhood and Health''. In 1925, she and

Letitia Fairfield Josephine Letitia Denny Fairfield CBE (10 March 1885 – 1 February 1978) was a medical doctor, a lawyer, a war-worker, and the first ever female Chief Medical Officer for London. She received a CBE for her outstanding achievements in medicine ...

conducted a survey of girls' experiences of menstruation; the findings were published in '' The Lancet'' in 1930. Murrell served on various committees of the

, and in 1924 she became the first woman elected to its Central Council; she sat on the council for nine years, until her death. She was the fifth president of the

Medical Women's Federation The Medical Women's Federation is the largest UK body of women doctors. The organisation is dedicated to the advancement of the personal and professional development of women in medicine and to improving the health of women and their families i ...

, from 1926 to 1928. In September 1933, she was the first female representative elected to the

General Medical Council The General Medical Council (GMC) is a public body that maintains the official register of medical practitioners within the United Kingdom. Its chief responsibility is to "protect, promote and maintain the health and safety of the public" by c ...

, but she died on 18 October 1933 before taking her seat.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Murrell, Christine 1874 births 1933 deaths 20th-century English medical doctors English women medical doctors English suffragists People from Clapham Alumni of the London School of Medicine for Women Presidents of the Medical Women's Federation British women in World War I 20th-century British women medical doctors 20th-century English women 20th-century English people