A traveling exhibit from the American Medical Women’s Association (AMWA) that highlights the contributions of women physicians during World War I is on display at the medical school’s W.E. Upjohn M.D. Campus this month.
The exhibit, titled “At Home and Over There: American Women Physicians in World War I,” features 15 photo boards on display near the auditorium on the first floor and 10 books on display on the second floor in the Information Commons.Ěý
The exhibit details how the American government encouraged women to support the war effort by working as nurses abroad or working on the home front, but women physicians were not allowed to register to serve in the Medical Reserve Corps on the front lines. Women physicians banded together to advocate for change. Eventually the women were hired as contract surgeons and were considered civilians and paid a lower salary. In all, 56 women served as contract surgeons and 11 were assigned as anesthetists overseas, an exhibit handout details. The women detailed their journeys in books and through photos, which make up the traveling exhibit.Ěý
A film accompanying the exhibit can be .Ěý
Jan Werbinski, Đ²ĘÍř, said the exhibit shows the mettle and determination of women to work whether they are welcomed or not. Dr. Werbinski is a clinical associate professor emerita in the medical school’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, president-elect of AMWA and secretary of the medical school’s AMWA branch, AMWA@WMed.
“We brought the exhibit to WMed to emphasize one of our main objectives, promoting women physicians and women faculty at the medical school,” Werbinski said. “It’s a way to highlight women doctors and to show that WMed is committed in promoting the interests of women physicians and women faculty.”
Ann Harris, a senior informationist and medical librarian team leader who coordinated the arrival and timing of the exhibit at the medical school, said the exhibit demonstrates important events in the history of medicine as a whole and especially in the history of women in medicine.
“What’s really interesting to me is women physicians and surgeons were willing to serve at a time when they were still fighting for the right to vote,” Harris said. “It also shows that despite the barriers that women faced, especially women physicians, they were able to make very important contributions during the war and they were just as capable as their male counterparts. I think it’s important to highlight that and I was just happy to be able to help bring this exhibit to WMed.”
Dr. Werbinski said she hopes the exhibit draws interest in the AMWA chapter at the medical school, which started in 2019 but had live meetings canceled this year with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nationally and internationally, women physicians get promoted less and are paid less across the board still today. Equity has been identified as a driving force for national and local AMWA chapters, Dr. Werbinski said.
The exhibit will remain on display at the medical school until November 1.Ěý