Why read Female Patients in Early Modern Britain?

Book cover of Female Patients in Early Modern Britain: Gender, Diagnosis, and Treatment

Book description

This investigation contributes to the existing scholarship on women and medicine in early modern Britain by examining the diagnosis and treatment of female patients by male professional medical practitioners from 1590 to 1740. In order to obtain a clearer understanding of female illness and medicine during this period, this study…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Female Patients in Early Modern Britain as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Jennifer Evans

Author

I am always fascinated by gender history and women’s experiences in the past. Churchill’s book puts women front and center and considers how medical practitioners understood women’s bodies and health and what women experienced as patients. The book covers traditionally feminine conditions – gynecological and obstetrical issues – but also looks at disorders that affected both men and women, including smallpox, and mental health – hysteria and hypochondria. I like the way this book thinks through all aspects of women’s experiences, how their disorders were understood, who they sought treatment from, and how those treatments were adapted to the specifics…

From Jennifer's list on The best books on early modern medicine.