Ernestina Pérez Barahona (

Valparaíso Valparaíso () is a major city, Communes of Chile, commune, Port, seaport, and naval base facility in the Valparaíso Region of Chile. Valparaíso was originally named after Valparaíso de Arriba, in Castilla–La Mancha, Castile-La Mancha, Spain ...

, 8 August 1865 - 1951) was a Chilean

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

and

feminist activist The feminist movement, also known as the women's movement, refers to a series of social movements and political campaigns for radical and liberal reforms on women's issues created by inequality between men and women. Such issues are women's l ...

known for being one of the first female students of medicine at the

University of Chile The University of Chile () is a public university, public research university in Santiago, Chile. It was founded on November 19, 1842, and inaugurated on September 17, 1843.

and for being the second woman physician in

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

, graduating just days after Eloísa Díaz.

Education

Pérez Barahona received her secondary education at the Lebrun Pinochet School. She received a Bachelor of Letters degree in 1883, and began her study of medicine later in the same year. In January 1887, she received her Physician and Surgeon degree and title. She left for

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

in 1888, entering the Frederick Wilhelm University (now known as

Humboldt University of Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...

). She took classes alongside men, but administrators installed a screen to prevent the other students from seeing her. She was the first woman to study medicine at the University. Two years later, she went to Paris to continue her studies.

Career

Pérez Barahona returned to Chile in 1894. She practiced medicine at San Borja Hospital and taught classes for female students, at the request of President

José Manuel Balmaceda José Manuel Emiliano Balmaceda Fernández (; July 19, 1840 – September 19, 1891) served as the 10th President of Chile from September 18, 1886, to August 29, 1891. Balmaceda was part of the Castilian-Basque aristocracy in Chile. While h ...

. She made another trip to Europe in 1910, publishing her book ''Compendio de Ginecologia'' in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

in 1910. While in Germany, the Medical Academy of Berlin appointed her as an honorary member. She was the first person from South America to become a member. Throughout her career, she was particularly interested in

women's health Women's health is an example of population health, where health is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity". Often treated ...

and

personal hygiene Hygiene is a set of practices performed to preserve health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...

and advocated for women's education. She was part of a lecture circle, women's club, and the Chilean

Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

, and founded an association for university women. Related to her interest in public health and hygiene, she was concerned about alcoholism and how it would effect Chileans. Many years after her death, the Chilean Women's Union (''La Unión Chilena De Mujeres'') convened a special meeting in her honor, including a speech by Elena Caffarena. They honored her for opening up the field of medicine for women in South America and her feminist advocacy.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Perez Barahona, Ernestina 1865 births 1951 deaths People from Valparaíso Chilean feminists Chilean activists Chilean women activists University of Chile alumni Chilean women physicians 20th-century Chilean women writers Chilean non-fiction writers 19th-century Chilean women 19th-century women physicians Expatriates in the German Empire