Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Celebrating Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler, the first African American female physician in the United States

Kristyn J. Smith, DO
Physician
March 20, 2019
Share
Tweet
Share

Last month on February 3, 2019, we celebrated National Women Physician’s Day (NWPD). Created in 2016 by the Physician Mom Group (PMG) in collaboration with Physicians Working Together (PWT) and Medelita, NWPD honors the first female physician in the U.S., Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell and highlights gender inequality in medicine. The day is a social media “holiday” of sorts, with timelines flooded with inspirational posts of women in white coats declaring “#IamBlackwell.” The posts are motivational and create a sense of unity, saying “we female physicians are all in this together, doing our individual parts to change the landscape of medicine.” The posts also remind us how much is yet to be done related to gender disparities within the physician workforce.

There is also another hashtag we should note: “#IamCrumpler.” But who is Crumpler? Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler was the first African American female physician in the United States.

Born on February 8, 1831, in Delaware, Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler was raised by her aunt who was known as the community nurse, caring for the sick and shut-in of the neighborhood. It is this early exposure to medicine that Dr. Crumpler credited as her inspiration for practicing as a nurse and then entering medical school in 1860. In 1864 Dr. Crumpler graduated from the New England Female Medical College, becoming the first African American woman physician in the U.S.

Ironically, Dr. Crumpler was also the only African American physician to graduate from the medical college since it closed in 1873. Initially, Dr. Crumpler practiced in Boston, MA, however after the Civil War ended she relocated to Richmond, Virginia and set up practice caring for newly freed slaves with the Freedmen’s Bureau. Not only was she the first black female physician in the U.S., but she also was one of the first African Americans to publish a medical text.

In 1883 she published A Book of Medical Discourses, a two-part guide on infant and women’s health. Reports regarding Dr. Crumpler’s later life are sparse, with records showing she later moved back to Massachusetts with her husband and died on March 9, 1895.

To put into perspective Dr. Crumpler’s accomplishments, in 1860, the year in which Dr. Crumpler matriculated into medical school only 300 of the 54,543 physicians in the U.S. were female. That’s less than one percent. How far have we come since Crumpler? Some would say quite far, others would say not far enough.

Currently, approximately 35 percent of practicing physicians are female.

However, just two percent of practicing physicians are black females. These numbers are substandard considering 51 percent of the U.S. population identifies as female, and approximately 13 percent of the U.S. population is black and female. The statistics underscore what we already know. The physician workforce does not reflect the diversity of this nation. While the reasons for the underrepresentation of minorities and women in medicine are complex, the solution is even more complex consisting of improved recruitment, retention and inclusion.

Holidays like NWPD and the #WhataDoctorLooksLike, a social media campaign in response to biased employees prohibiting black doctors from responding to in-flight emergencies, are important parts of combating the implicitly biased view that physicians are white males. These campaigns aim to increase the visibility of women and minorities in medicine and challenge stereotypes that narrow the perspective of what a doctor looks like, further enhancing diversity and inclusion in medicine.

Kristyn J. Smith is an emergency medicine resident.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

8 reasons why Instagram is important in medicine

March 20, 2019 Kevin 0
…
Next

Physician heal thyself. At your own risk.

March 21, 2019 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Medical school, Public Health & Policy

Post navigation

< Previous Post
8 reasons why Instagram is important in medicine
Next Post >
Physician heal thyself. At your own risk.

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

  • A physician’s addiction to social media

    Amanda Xi, MD
  • Mental health issues and the African American community

    Lashawnda Thornton, MSW
  • Asylum seekers: a snapshot from an American physician’s lens

    Madeline Cohen and Gauri G. Agarwal, MD
  • An American physician in Sweden. Here’s what he thought about its health care.

    Richard Young, MD
  • How a physician keynote can highlight your conference

    Kevin Pho, MD
  • Chasing numbers contributes to physician burnout

    DrizzleMD

More in Physician

  • Why more doctors are leaving clinical practice and how it helps health care

    Arlen Meyers, MD, MBA
  • Harassment and overreach are driving physicians to quit

    Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD
  • Why starting with why can transform your medical practice

    Neil Baum, MD
  • Life’s detours may be blessings in disguise

    Osmund Agbo, MD
  • Inside the heart of internal medicine: Why we stay

    Ryan Nadelson, MD
  • The quiet grief behind hospital walls

    Aaron Grubner, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Why specialist pain clinics and addiction treatment services require strong primary care

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Conditions
    • Harassment and overreach are driving physicians to quit

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician
    • Why peer support can save lives in high-pressure medical careers

      Maire Daugharty, MD | Conditions
    • When a medical office sublease turns into a legal nightmare

      Ralph Messo, DO | Physician
    • Addressing menstrual health inequities in adolescents

      Callia Georgoulis | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
  • Recent Posts

    • Eric Topol explores the science of super-agers and healthy aging [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why more doctors are leaving clinical practice and how it helps health care

      Arlen Meyers, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Harassment and overreach are driving physicians to quit

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician
    • Why regular exercise is the best prescription for lifelong health

      George F. Smith, MD | Conditions
    • When the weight won’t budge: the hidden physiology of grief, stress, and set point

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why starting with why can transform your medical practice

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 1 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Why specialist pain clinics and addiction treatment services require strong primary care

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Conditions
    • Harassment and overreach are driving physicians to quit

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician
    • Why peer support can save lives in high-pressure medical careers

      Maire Daugharty, MD | Conditions
    • When a medical office sublease turns into a legal nightmare

      Ralph Messo, DO | Physician
    • Addressing menstrual health inequities in adolescents

      Callia Georgoulis | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
  • Recent Posts

    • Eric Topol explores the science of super-agers and healthy aging [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why more doctors are leaving clinical practice and how it helps health care

      Arlen Meyers, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Harassment and overreach are driving physicians to quit

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician
    • Why regular exercise is the best prescription for lifelong health

      George F. Smith, MD | Conditions
    • When the weight won’t budge: the hidden physiology of grief, stress, and set point

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why starting with why can transform your medical practice

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Celebrating Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler, the first African American female physician in the United States
1 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...