The Victorian Medical Women's Society (VMWS) is the longest-running association of women medical practitioners and medical students. It was established in Melbourne, Australia in 1896 and is one of the oldest active medical organisations in the world. The aim of the society was to set a benchmark in women's health around Victoria, and to advance the professional development of medical women, through education, research, and the improvement of professional opportunities. The state-run society became affiliated with the national body, Australian Federation of Medical Women (since 1927), and thereby the

Medical Women's International Association The Medical Women's International Association is a non-governmental organization founded in 1919 with the purpose of representing women in medicine, female physicians worldwide. Esther Lovejoy was its first president. The Association grew from an ...

History

The Context

In 1862 the Melbourne University Medical School opened, however women were not admitted. Over the next 20 years each of the university's faculties opened to admitting women, except the medicine faculty. After Constance Stone's admission to the faculty was refused in 1883, she travelled to the USA to commence a medical degree. In January 1987, Lilian Alexander, and Helen Sexton put an advertisement in the paper seeking other women who were interested in enrolling in medicine at the university. Five women responded, Clara Stone, who was Constance Stone's sister, Grace Vale, Margaret Whyte, and

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Empress Elisabeth (disambiguation), lists various empresses named ''Elisabeth'' or ''Elizabeth'' * Princess Elizabeth ...

and Annie O'Hara. They started drawing on their collective resources, gathering support through their connections to the university council, and in the media leading to supportive articles in the paper. Eventually, on 21 February 1887, the university council met, and Dr. Alexander Morrison, moved a motion to approve the admission of women in medicine, and it was seconded by Dr. John Madden. The motion passed ten votes to three. One of the three dissenting votes was cast by the university's Vice-Chancellor Sir Anthony Brownless, who had strongly opposed the inclusion of women at the university for many years. All seven women were enrolled, and along with two other women Amy de Castilla and

Emily Mary Page Stone Emily Mary Page Stone MBBS (31 May 1865 – 18 December 1910), generally referred to as Mary or E. Mary Page Stone (sometimes hyphenated), was a medical doctor in the State of Victoria, Australia. Mary was born in Mornington, Victoria. She was ...

who had enrolled in the following years, all graduated by 1894, and entered into practice. * Clara Stone graduated in 1891 * Margaret Whyte graduated in 1891 * Helen Sexton graduated in 1892 * Elizabeth O'Hara graduated in 1892 * Lilian Alexander graduated in 1893 * Amy de Castilla graduated in 1893 *

graduated in 1893 * Grace Vale graduated in 1894 * Annie O'Hara graduated in 1894 Constance Stone returned to Australia in 1890 as a qualified doctor, and began practice, becoming the first woman to do so in Australia. Together these ten women were instrumental in founding what would later become the Victorian Medical Women's Society.

Founding the 'Women's Medical Association'

The Victorian Medical Women's Society was founded as the Women's Medical Association on 22 March 1895, at the University of Melbourne Medical School, with Dr Constance Stone, serving as its first president. It was founded with the aim to further the professional development of medical women by education, research and improvement of professional opportunities, and fostering relationships between undergraduates, and graduates. Soon after its foundation, its aims evolved to promote and advocate the health and welfare of all Australians, particularly women and children.

Queen Victoria Hospital

The founders of the Victorian Medical Women's Society established the

Queen Victoria Hospital The Queen Victoria Hospital (QVH), located in East Grinstead, West Sussex, England is the specialist reconstructive surgery centre for the south east of England, and also provides services at clinics across the region. It has become world-famo ...

, one of the first hospitals worldwide to be run by women, for women. This clinic was run from the hall of the Melbourne Welsh Church, at 320 La Trobe Street, Melbourne, where Constance Stone's husband Dr/Reverend Egryn Jones presided. Here, the founders of the society volunteered their expertise and treated the poorest of women at no cost. Their services were in high demand with over two thousand patients presenting to the clinic in its first three months of opening. To expand their services the society established the Queen's Shilling Fund, where every woman in the state of Victoria was asked to donate a shilling to fund a new hospital. This campaign, largely arranged by suffragist Annette 'Annie' Bear-Crawford, was very successful and the Queen Victoria Hospital was born at Mint Place a year later. In 1946 it was relocated to a much larger premises at the site of the former Melbourne General Hospital on Lonsdale Street (now The Queen Victoria Village). By 1951 it was the biggest women's hospital in the British Commonwealth. In 1986 the hospital became part of the

Monash Medical Centre Monash Medical Centre (MMC) is a teaching hospital in Melbourne, Australia. It provides specialist tertiary-level healthcare to Melbourne's south-east. Monash Medical Centre is part of Monash Health, the largest public health service in Victori ...

as part of moves to decentralise hospital services.

First World War

At the time of the onset of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, many Australian women doctors wanted to support the war effort by providing their much-needed skills in assisting the sick and wounded. However, as women, they were not permitted enlistment in both the

Royal Australian Army Medical Corps The Royal Australian Army Medical Corps (RAAMC) is the branch of the Australian Army responsible for providing medical care to Army personnel. The AAMC was formed in 1902 through the amalgamation of medical units of the various Australian colon ...

and the

Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) was a specialist corps in the British Army which provided medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. On 15 November 2024, the corps was amalgamated with the Royal Army De ...

. Six members of the Victorian Medical Women's Society sought alternative means to provide their services, through military services established by medical women overseas. These notable women, including

Mary de Garis Mary Clementina De Garis (16 December 1881 – 18 November 1963) was an Australian medical doctor. During World War I she worked at the Ostrovo Unit in Serbia for the Scottish Women's Hospitals and after the war worked at Geelong Hospital in ...

, Helen Sexton, and Vera Scantlebury are honoured with a memorial plaque which was placed at The Welsh Church in 2016.

Members

Foundational members included

* Emma 'Constance' Stone (1856–1902) * Grace 'Clara' Stone (1860–1957) * Mary Page Stone (1865–1910) * Lilian Helen Alexander (1861–1934) * Janet 'Jenny' Lindsay Greig (1874–1950) * Jane 'Jean' Stocks Greig (1872–1939) * Hannah Mary 'Helen' Sexton (1862–1950) * Grace Vale (1860–1933) * Ida 'Gertrude' Halley (1867–1939)

Other notable members

Edith Helen Barrett Edith Helen Barrett (29 October 1872 – 1 February 1939) was an Australian medical doctor and a founder of the Bush Nursing Association of Victoria. Early life and education Barrett was born on 29 October 1872 in Emerald Hill, Victoria and w ...

(1872–1939) - General Practitioner, known best for the founding of the Bush Nursing Association of Victoria and her work with The Australian Red Cross and National Council of Women * Constance Ellis (1872–1942) - Obstetrician and gynaecologist, and first woman to graduate from the University of Melbourne as a Doctor of Medicine * Mary Clementina De Garis (1881–1963) - Obstetrician * Vera Scantlebury (1889–1946) - Physician, Surgeon, Anaesthetist, Director of Infant Welfare Vic Gov. Known best for her work in maternal and child welfare * Dame Kate Isabel Campbell (1899–1986) - Paediatrician, best known for her research in excessive supplemental oxygen causing blindness in premature neonates *

Mary Glowrey Mary Glowrey JMJ, religious name ''Mary of the Sacred Heart'', (1887–1957) was an Australian born religious sister and educated doctor who spent 37 years in India, where she set up healthcare facilities, services and systems. She is believed t ...

(1887–1957) - First Catholic religious sister to practice as a doctor (in obstetrics, gynaecology, and ophthalmology), best known for her medical and social work with women in Guntur, India * Dame Annie 'Jean' MacNamara (1899–1968) - Paediatrician, best known for her contributions to children's health and welfare, and research on polio * Jean Littlejohn (1899–1990) - Ear Nose Throat Surgeon * Lorna Lloyd-Green (1910–2002) - Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, first female fellow of the Australian Medical Association, advocate for equal pay *

Elizabeth Kathleen Turner Elizabeth Kathleen Turner (19 August 1914 – 26 December 1999) was a physician from Australia, who was the first doctor in Australia to administer penicillin. She held the position of Medical Superintendent of the (Royal) Children's Hospita ...

AO (1914-1999) was a Paediatrician, who was the medical superintendent of the (Royal) Children's Hospital Melbourne from 1943 until 1946. She was first doctor in Australia to administer penicillin. *

Lorna Verdun Sisely Lorna Verdun Sisely , MBBS, MS, FRACS, FACS, CM (14 March 1916 – 27 January 2004) was a surgeon from Victoria, Australia Victoria, commonly abbreviated as Vic, is a state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state (af ...

(1916–2004) - General Surgeon * Dame Joyce Daws (1925–2007) - Thoracic surgeon * Lena McEwan (1927–2011) - First female plastic surgeon in Australia

References

*McRae H (2015) ''Dinner With the Devil - Women and Melbourne's Queen Vic: Their Pride and Shame, Joy and Sorrow.'' BookBaby Publishing, Australia. *Murnane M (2015) ''Honourable healers : pioneering women doctors : Elizabeth Blackwell, Elizabeth Garrett Anderson and Constance Stone.'' Australian Scholarly Publishing, Australia. *Sheard H (2016) ''A Heart Undivided, The life of Dr Vera Scantlebury Brown.'' Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences University of Melbourne *Sheard H, Lee R (2019) ''Women to the Front.'' Penguin Random House Publishing, Sydney

External links

*{{official website, https://vic.afmw.org.au/ International medical associations Medical associations based in Australia Medical and health organisations based in Victoria (state) Organizations for women in science and technology Women's clubs Women's clubs in Australia