Name Kate Fraser | ||
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Kate Fraser (10 August 1887 – 20 March 1957) was the first female doctor to graduate from Glasgow University and a pioneer of mental healthcare.
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Early life and education
Fraser was born in Paisley in 1887, where she lived with her father, mother and four sisters. She was educated at Miss Boag's School for Young Ladies, Paisley Grammar School, Swanley Horticultural College and Queen Margaret College, where she was enrolled in the Art faculty (and later the Science faculty) at the age of 16. Fraser graduated with a Bachelor of Science in 1900 and a Bachelor of Medicine in 1903; she became a Doctor of Medicine in 1913.
Career
Following graduation, Fraser took a job as Assistant Physician at the Bridge of Weir Sanitorium, later becoming a junior resident at The Crichton Royal Lunatic Asylum, a psychiatric hospital that encouraged patients to participate in activities. In 1907 she founded the Paisley Mental Welfare Association. As the first woman School Medical Officer in Govan from 1908, Fraser introduced intelligence tests in schools.
In 1908, Fraser took a Diploma in Public Health, graduating as a Doctor of Medicine in 1913 with a thesis entitled: 'Feeble-minded Children. An inquiry into mental deficiency in school children with special reference to syphilis as a causative factor as determined by the Wassermann reaction.'
Fraser became the first female Deputy Commissioner for the General Board of Control for Scotland in 1914, and Commissioner in 1935. In this role, she petitioned for those with mental health conditions to be included in the Disabled Person's Employment Act (1958). Fraser retired from this position in 1945 and was awarded with a CBE.
During World War II, Fraser put in place a rehabilitation scheme for servicemen who had been discharged on medical grounds. Fraser also had a long association with Waverley Park Home in Dunbartonshire. Fraser and Aidan Thomson co-authored 'Inquiry into Matters Arising out of the Methods of Discipline used at Waverley Park Certified Institution' in 1938, in response to allegations of abuse.
In 1947, Fraser retired from her role as Commissioner of the General Board of Control for Scotland, and became Chair of the Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH) and Chairman of the Scottish Division of the Royal Medico-Psychological Association.
Fraser was appointed a CBE for her contribution to mental welfare at the age of 68.
Fraser never married, and lived with her housekeeper until her death in Paisley on 20 March 1957.
Legacy
Fraser gained an international reputation for her work in mental healthcare. The Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH) was based on the model for the Paisley Mental Welfare Association.