Was Osler opposed to women becoming doctors?
In 1885 William Osler (1849-1919) expressed his opposition to women-only medical schools in Canada arguing there was no market for female practitioners. He believed women were not strong enough for clinical practice. He was unhappy that the Johns Hopkins University was forced to accept women when its Medical School opened in 1893. At Oxford he continued to express concern about the fitness of women for practice and suggested their best opportunities lay in a limited number of areas--pathology, institutions for women, the care of women and children in general practice, and in India and the missionary field. His views seemed to change during the First World War, when he helped to raise funds for the London School of Medicine for Women and supported Charles Sherrington's attempt to get women admitted to the Oxford Medical School. However, in his last year he was again concerned about the relatively poor quality of women physicians--but at least thought it unsurprising considering how badly they had been treated!