Women's History Month: Susan La Flesche Picotte
Susan La Flesche Picotte was the first Native American woman to become a physician in the United States and a strong advocate for public health reform.
La Flesche Picotte was born in 1865 on Nebraska's Omaha reservation to Chief Iron Eye (Joseph La Flesche) and his wife One Woman (Mary Gale). Her family made sure she learned the traditions of her tribe but also pushed her to be educated in Euro-American society as means of survival. As a child, she had watched a sick Native American woman die because the local white doctor would not give her care and she credited this tragedy as her inspiration to train as a physician, so she could provide care for the people she lived with on the reservation.
After completing her early education, La Flesche Picotte applied to the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania. At the time, it was extremely rare for any Victorian-age woman to attempt to get a medical degree. Despite this, La Flesche Picotte graduated early and at the top of her class in 1889.
La Flesche Picotte returned to the Omaha reservation and became the physician at the government boarding school run by the Office of Indian Affairs. Although not obligated to, she began to care for the broader community and ended up becoming the sole doctor for more than 1,200 people across 400+ miles.
In 1894, La Flesche Picotte married and had two sons. She yet again defied expectations set for Victorian women at the time and continued to practice after marriage, often working 20 hour days in order to serve her community. In 1913, La Flesche Picotte opened the first hospital on a reservation that was not funded by the government, open to anyone regardless of race or ethnicity.
During her lifetime, La Flesche Picotte became a strong advocate for public health issues including temperance, school hygiene, food sanitation, and efforts to combat the spread of tuberculosis. In addition to public health, she also spoke out against the theft of Native American land.
La Flesche Picotte passed away on September 18, 1915.
Sources:
https://www.nps.gov/people/susan-la-flesche-picotte.htm
https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/meet-first-american-indian-woman-physician-ienwy3/14818/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susan_La_Flesche_Picotte#cite_note-auto13-61
https://cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_253.html