Justine Siegemund Google Doodle 2023: Google Doodle is celebrating the groundbreaking midwife’s life today

 Justine Siegemund Google Doodle 2023: Google Doodle is celebrating the groundbreaking midwife’s life today

The Google Doodle can be seen in America, the UK, Germany, Iceland and Greece

Today’s Google Doodle celebrates an influential figure in the field of midwifery.

Justine Siegemund changed the idea of what midwifery is in central Europe. Her Google Doodle can be seen in America, the UK, Germany, Iceland and Greece.

What does the Google Doodle celebrate?

Google says: “Today’s Doodle celebrates Justine Siegemund, a midwife who dared to challenge patriarchal attitudes in the 17th century. She was the first person in Germany to write a book on obstetrics from a woman’s perspective. On this day in 1690, the European University Viadrina Frankfurt certified her book, The Court Midwife, as an official medical textbook. During a time when few women had access to formal education, Siegemund became the first woman to publish a seminal medical text in German.”

The Doodle shows her writing her most famous works, alongside pictures of the pregnant anatomy.

Who is Justine Siegemund?

The website continues: “Siegemund was born in 1636 in Rohnstock, Lower Silesia. As a young woman, she had a prolapsed uterus that ill-informed midwives misdiagnosed as pregnancy. This frustrating experience inspired her to become a midwife herself and improve obstetrical education.

“After an apprenticeship, Siegemund began her career in midwifery by offering free services to underprivileged women. She soon became known for her ability to safely guide women through difficult births, and word spread quickly to expecting women across the country.

“Siegemund accepted an official position as the City Midwife of Lignitz in 1683 and later became the Court Midwife in Berlin, where she delivered children for the royal family. She also published The Court Midwife during this time and greatly improved maternal and infant health in Germany.

“Up until then, German midwives largely passed down their knowledge through oral traditions. There wasn’t a standardized way to document safe birth practices. The Court Midwife was the first to offer a comprehensive guide on childbirth in Germany.

“Thank you Justine Siegemund for setting the foundation for modern childbirth education! Your legacy still inspires physicians to take a page out of your book — to make labour and delivery safer for all. “

Good Reads describes her famous book as: “First published in 1690, The Court Midwife made Justine Siegemund (1636-1705) the spokesperson for the art of midwifery at a time when most obstetrical texts were written by men. More than a technical manual, The Court Midwife contains descriptions of obstetric techniques of midwifery and its attendant social pressures.

“Siegemund’s visibility as a writer, midwife, and proponent of an incipient professionalism accorded her a status virtually unknown to German women in the seventeenth century. Translated here into English for the first time, The Court Midwife contains riveting birthing scenes, sworn testimonials by former patients, and a brief autobiography.”