Dr. Ogino Ginko: Google marks 171st birthday of first Japan’s female licensed medical practitioner

Google doodle on April 4, 2022, celebrates the 171st Birthday of Dr. Ogino Ginko, who was the first licensed female physician practicing Western medicine in Japan. As the first female to attend Kojuin, a private medical school for men, she opened the door for women to attend prestigious medical schools in Japan.

Ogino Ginko was born in Tawarase, in Musashi Province (present-day Kumagaya City, Saitama Prefecture). The Ogino’s were a respectable family as they had the responsibility of the headquarters of that area. She was the youngest of two brothers and five sisters. At the age of 16 in the year 1867, Ginko was married to Kanichiro Inamura, but divorced her husband in 1870, after contracting gonorrhea from him.

In 1873, Ogino Ginko moved to Tokyo to resume and complete her basic education at the school of Yorikuni Inoue. She graduated in 1879 with honours. This achievement was remarkable, as only 15 out of 74 female students from the school managed to complete the journey. In 1880, Ogino entered the medical school of Kojuin, becoming the first female student of the institution.

Later she entered Tokyo Women's Normal School (present-day Ochanomizu University), which was at that time a private medical academy with an all-male student body. Despite several hurdles, she completed her studies in 1882. Dr. Ginko petitioned multiple times over the course of two years before women were finally allowed to take her medical practitioner's examination in 1885. After getting licensed, she opened an OB/GYN clinic in Tokyo that specialized in providing safe, non-judgmental care for women. 

Dr. Ogino also served as a staff doctor at the girls' school of Meiji Gakuin University, always professing for equality between men and women. She again got married in 1890 to a Protestant clergyman and utopian visionary, Yukiyoshi Shikata.

Outside of medicine, she also advocated for women in Japan to gain the right to vote. Today’s Doodle artwork celebrates Dr. Ginko’s legacy and her commitment to gender equality in Japan.

Source: Wikipedia, Google doodle 

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