Training to be a Doctor
For much of the early 19th century, most doctors were educated in England. After the 1840s, medical schools were established in America such as Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, Harvard University and the Kentucky School of Medicine. Crossing the Atlantic was difficult, and schools in America were cheaper, so Americans stopped traveling abroad for medical education. Students learned solely through lectures on biology, pathology, and chemistry. Harvard Medical School did not even own a single stethoscope or microscope until after the war. However, practitioners were expected to be able to perform surgery and prepare medications.
Medical societies were put in charge of establishing regulations for practice and certification. However, not all doctors were licensed. Many had not even been to medical school, but apprenticed with another physician. In 1829, legislature was passed saying that any doctor who had been practicing for seven years could earn a license. As a result, many uneducated doctors were practicing throughout the country. Most American doctors had trained for less than two years, had no clinical experience, and had no laboratory instruction. As compared to European doctors, American physicians were woefully deficient.