Nov 252020
St Giles’ Cathedral, High St, EH1 1RE
![Plaque in St. Giles Cathedral](http://curiousedinburgh.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Untitled-14.jpg)
Sophia Jex-Blake (1840-1912) became Scotland’s first female doctor when she established a private practice in Edinburgh in September 1878 at 73 Grove Street. In 1885, she opened the Edinburgh Hospital and Dispensary for Women and Children, just a few doors down from her private practice. It was a so-called cottage hospital, a small hospital (6 beds) intended to cater for the immediate needs of the local poor population without requiring them to travel long distances.
![Sophia Jex-Blake. Creator: unknown. © The University of Edinburgh](http://curiousedinburgh.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Untitled-15.jpg)
© The University of Edinburgh
![Sophia Jex-Blake. Photograph by Swaine. (Wellcome Collection).](http://curiousedinburgh.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Untitled-16.jpg)
(Wellcome Collection).
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