Medical Training Information in the U.S

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";}

The arrangement lasted anywhere from two to six years with some students then continuing on to a formal medical school for at least two to four more years of education and to obtain a degree. The majority of physicians at the beginning of the century, however, opened their practices without having obtained a degree. Five medical schools were in operation by 1810.

Another author, Michael Varhola, in his book, ‘Everyday Life during the Civil War’, makes the following interesting statements:

• That medical schools were common during the Civil War, but unfortunately, many of them provided little training.

• That in the 19th century, training for surgeons typically consisted of three, thirteen-week semesters of medical school. Some good medical schools did exist, mainly at established colleges and universities like Princeton and Yale. Programs at these schools lasted one or two years and consisted almost entirely of classroom instruction, with just a few weeks of medical residency. Training each year was identical. Some students did not bother to study a second year, although it was recommended. There is no mention of medical equipment.

Then there is Candy Moulton’s book, ‘Everyday Life in the Wild West – from 1840 to 1900’ which states that there were some trained physicians in the West, but that much of the area relied on the knowledge and commonsense of individuals who had no formal training. They had learned by watching and doing. In the West a doctor was a doctor if he said so; whether or not he had had any training. California had a medical practice law in 1866 and Texas was the first state to establish a board of medical examiners in 1873. Western medical schools included the Medical Dept of the University of the Pacific founded in 1859, which became the Cooper School and ultimately, Stanford School of Medicine.

Doctors used to register with local county clerks before establishing a practice, but such regulations weren’t uniformly enforced until late in the period. What used to happen in those days is that a doctor would settle down in an area, open an office – sometimes in a pharmacy or drug store – and hang up a sign or put an ad in the local paper. Doctors used to carry leather satchels or placed their medical supplies in saddlebags. After the Civil War their medical kits often were army surplus instruments in velvet-lined field cases.

Medical equipment during the Civil War was antiquated, and usually consisted of lancets which were boiled. According to a video on You Tube, there was no morphine and no chloroform and whiskey was sometimes used to clean wounds, or the patient would get a shot of whiskey when they amputated a leg. I don’t know how true this, but I’m sure watching old westerns had a lot to do with it.