During a time where women were no more than stay-at-home housewives, Susan La Flesche Picotte broke through all barriers and became the first Native American woman to become a physician in the United States. Graduating from the Hampton Institute as valedictorian, Susan was determined to pursue her medical degree and was accepted at Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania. She wrote an appeal to the Connecticut Indian Association for finances and was the first person to receive financial aid for professional education in America. After receiving her medical degree, Susan accepted a position as a government physician for her reservation at the Omaha Agency Indian School. Throughout the rest of her life, she continued her connection with the Connecticut Indian Association and was an activist and speaker for Native education.
What does it take to heal a people? That’s the question at the heart of Medicine Woman, a new one-hour PBS documentary interweaving the lives of Native healers of today with that of the first Native American doctor. Born on the Nebraska frontier in 1865, Susan La Flesche Picotte studied medicine at a time when few women dared. She graduated first in her Philadelphia class and returned home to a shattered world. She spent the rest of her life working to help her people become whole again. To view the documentary, please click https://visionmakermedia.org/medicine-women/ |
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