2025 -- H 5326

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2025

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H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N

CELEBRATING “NATIONAL WOMEN PHYSICIANS DAY” ON FEBRUARY 3, 2025, IN

THE STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

     Introduced By: Representatives Diaz, Shekarchi, Blazejewski, Chippendale, Hull, J.
Lombardi, Felix, Morales, Slater, and Stewart

     Date Introduced: February 06, 2025

     Referred To: House read and passed

     WHEREAS, National Women Physicians Day commemorates the birthday of Dr.

Elizabeth Blackwell, who, in 1849, became the first woman to receive a medical degree in the

United States; and

     WHEREAS, Dr. Blackwell championed the participation of women in the medical field

and ultimately opened her own medical college for women, the Women's Medical College in

New York City. In addition, during the Civil War, she and her sisters worked closely with

Florence Nightingale, training nurses for Union Hospitals, to provide care for the sick and

wounded; and

     WHEREAS, National Women Physicians Day honors the pioneering achievements and

ongoing contributions of all female physicians in the field of health care, including the notable

accomplishments of Dr. Velma Scantlebury-White, who was the first Black woman transplant

surgeon in the United States and who, over her 40-year career, performed an estimated 2,000

organ transplants; and

     WHEREAS, Dr. Velma Scantlebury-White is no stranger to overcoming challenges. She

grew up in Barbados, and at the age of 15, immigrated to Brooklyn, New York, with her family.

Pursuing her dream of becoming a physician, she eventually earned her medical degree from

Columbia University, and eight years later, earned her Doctor of Surgery from Pitt School of

Medicine, a first in the country; and

     WHEREAS, Dr. Velma Scantlebury-White is recognized as one of the top doctors in the

United States and is passionate and dedicated to educating communities of color about the need

for more organ donors and the rising number of patients in need of transplantation; and

     WHEREAS, Since 1849, women physicians have made remarkable strides in health care,

and as of May 2024, there were 424,536 female physicians in the United States; and

     WHEREAS, In addition, over the course of the last four years, women have made up the

majority of medical school applicants, matriculants, and enrollees; however, a 2021 report from

the Rand Corporation found that female physicians earn $2 million less than men over the course

of their career; and

     WHEREAS, Women physicians bring unique perspectives to patient care, and serve as

leaders, educators, researchers and mentors to future generations; and

     WHEREAS, National Women Physicians Day honors the achievements of female

physicians and is a time to not only recognize the contributions of female physicians to

healthcare, but to also inspire future generations of female physicians, and to advocate for equal

pay and leadership opportunities; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island hereby

celebrates February 3, 2025, as “National Women Physicians Day”; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to Mariah Stump, MD, MPH, President of the

Board of Directors, Rhode Island Medical Women’s Association (RIMWA).

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