'Since male doctors were pushing us aside, we had to elbow our way through'. A history of the South African Society of Medical Women.

This paper aims to document the history of the South African Society of Medical Women (SASMW). It examines the aims and objectives of the society and the work it undertook, and briefly assesses its impact and the reasons for its decline. The material presented in this paper is based on data gathered through the use of two qualitative research methods, viz. intensive interviewing and archival/documentary analysis. This paper demonstrates that the SASMW was established in response to gender discrimination within and outside the medical profession. It argues that these women played an important role in challenging discriminatory practices and legislation, and suggests that the society's impact was most significant in the first two decades of its existence. Furthermore, it argues that it was unable to sustain its membership and activities during the late 1970s and 1980s as it did not respond adequately to the changing social and political climate and the altered racial and gender composition of the medical profession.