School for them, School for us

In chapter one, Starr explains how the medical profession changed in terms of the kind of schooling one need in order to become a professional. The problems faced by institutions trying to produce the best graduates is something that has not changed much today. Schools are still completing against one another but not there is a higher volume of schools. The idea that the boundaries of the medical profession were drawn on lines such as "graduates versus nongraduates of medical schools; members versus nonmembers of medical societies; licensed versus unlicensed practitioners" (46) is one that boggles the mind today when to become a doctor you have to go through not only undergrad, but also med school as well plus rotations and many other challenges. As the chapter continued, I found myself thinking about us as students and how many of us have to be licensed to do what we want as well. Teaching for example is something you have to be licensed for at any level (or have a Ph. D). I was also struck by the fact that it was so easy for anyone to practice medicine. It makes sense that before medicine was truly "practiced" anyone could be a doctor of sorts. If you had a cure to a common ailment that could set you on the path to the profession of doctor. Finally, I found it very interesting that women seemed to be the primary medical practitioners. In some ways it makes sense due to the fact that the woman is supposed to be the caregiver, but the fact that they were allowed to take such a prominent role was something I found surprising.