Freida Ruth Heighway (1907–1963) was an Australian obstetrician and gynaecologist, the first woman to graduate from Sydney University with a medical degree and the first woman admitted to the

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) is a professional association based in London, United Kingdom. Its members, including people with and without medical degrees, work in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology, that is ...

Early life and education

Freida Heighway was born on 2 June 1907, the only child of Mr and Mrs F. S. Heighway. She grew up in Burwood, New South Wales. Heighway attended Methodist Ladies College in Burwood, graduating in 1925. She then attended the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

and graduated with a Master of Business (1930), Bachelor of Science (1930) and Doctor of Medicine (1939). She graduated MB BS with honours in 1930, and was the first woman at the University of Sydney to receive the degree of Doctor of Medicine.

Career

Heighway began her medical career as a two-year Resident Medical Officer at the Royal Prince Alfred and North Shore Hospital. Later, she travelled to

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, England, to work as a medical resident and trained in

obstetrics Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a su ...

and

gynaecology Gynaecology or gynecology (see American and British English spelling differences) is the area of medicine concerned with conditions affecting the female reproductive system. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, which focuses on pre ...

. In 1932 Heighway moved to England and continued work as a Resident Medical Officer at St Mary's Hospital in Manchester. Upon return to Australia in 1934, Heighway then set up her own private practice in Burwood, New South Wales. She then took rooms in Macquarie Street and obtained honorary appointments at the Rachel Forster Hospital for Women and Children and The Women's Hospital, Crown Street. In 1945, Heighway moved with her husband, Andrew Arthur Abbie, and three daughters to

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

, where she found that the obstetrics field was dominated by men and she set up a solo specialist practice which grew rapidly. Although her work was centred on the Queen Victoria Maternity Hospital, she also cared for patients at the Royal Adelaide and

Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elisabeth or Elizabeth the Queen may refer to: Queens regnant * Elizabeth I (1533–1603; ), Queen of England and Ireland * Elizabeth II (1926–2022; ), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms * Queen B ...

hospitals.

Awards and honours

* Fellow of the

* The Ruth Heighway Memorial Prize and Medal for obstetrics is awarded by the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. Its main campus in the Adelaide city centre includes many Sa ...

in her honour

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Heighway, Freida Ruth 1907 births 1963 deaths Australian gynaecologists Fellows of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists 20th-century Australian women medical doctors 20th-century Australian medical doctors