Happy May Day and National Physician's Day!

Today is National Physician's Day in Canada, a date chosen by the Canadian Medical Association in recognition of Dr. Emily Stowe, the first female physician to practice in Canada. I posted the picture above on my previous blog, but is is worth showing again. This was the anatomy class at the University of Toronto in 1916 during the time my grandfather and grandmother were studying to become doctors. What is most remarkable to me is that while one student wore sleeve protectors over his lab coat, none of these men wore gloves on their hands while dissecting a dead body. I showed my grandmother's graduation photo in a previous post, and since then I found a speech she gave in the 1980s where she described what it was like to be a woman in a male dominated class at this time. 

Grandma D's handwriting- "some of the men teased us, others ignored us."

I have worked with many dedicated doctors, women and men, and admire their hard work which is done with skill and empathy. Patients expect a lot from physicians, wanting firm diagnoses after a short consultation, as well as quick fixes for complex problems that are often lifestyle related. This past year has been a stretch for doctors and health teams as they treat a new illness in a pandemic setting. The standard for protective gear has reached a new high compared to 115 years ago as current health care workers wear gowns, gloves, masks, respirators and face shields.

So kudos to the medical pioneers in the field like Grandma and Grandad, to my son-in-law, Dr CF, and to all the doctors who I have worked with in our local hospitals and community. 

And to add some May colour to this post, here is May Flowers, a painting by Canadian indigenous artist Daphne Odjig who was born on Manitoulin Island.

Happy May Day to humankind everywhere!

May Flowers by Daphne Odjig