Contents
Ogino Ginko
Becoming Japan’s first woman licensed under its modern medical system and treating women facing barriers to care.
Medical licence · Women’s healthcare
- Born
- 4 April 1851
- Birthplace
- Tawarase, Japan
- Died
- 23 June 1913
More people
Ogino Ginko
Ogino Ginko fought exclusion from medical training and licensing in Meiji Japan. Her own experience as a patient helped drive her determination to practise, and she went on to establish clinics and advocate women’s education.
Early life
Rural origins
Born Ogino Gin in Tawarase, now part of Kumagaya in Saitama Prefecture.
A patient’s perspective
Illness and uncomfortable treatment experiences after her first marriage prompted her interest in becoming a physician.
Career
- 1875–1882
Teacher training and medicine
Studied at Tokyo Women’s Normal School and then at a private medical school despite resistance to female students.
- 1885
Licensed practice
Passed the licensing examinations and opened a Tokyo clinic specialising in women’s health.
- 1890s–1913
Hokkaido and Tokyo
Practised in Hokkaido before returning to Tokyo, where she continued medical work until her death.
Contributions
Medical licence
Overcame a formal barrier that had excluded women from the new licensing system.
Women’s healthcare
Established clinical services in Tokyo focused on obstetrics and gynaecology.
Setana practice
Opened a clinic in Hokkaido providing care that included women and children.
Beyond medicine
Christian faith
Converted to Christianity and participated in women’s reform and temperance organisations.
Second marriage
Married Yukiyoshi Shikata and joined him in Hokkaido during an effort to establish a Christian community.
Sources & photo credit
Life, career and references ↗Institutional biography and research ↗Photo: Unknown author Unknown author. Public domain · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
