English was chosen as the language of instruction mainly for
utilisation of the immense wealth of printed work and
illustrations in
the Western medical literature.
On the
recommendation of the Committee, a
Government Order
No. 28 of 28th January 1835,
Medical College of
Bengal was established.
This day is still
celebrated as the Foundation day of
the Calcutta
Medical College.
A small hospital
consisting of 20 beds was established on
1st April
1838. In 1840 a large Hospital for women was founded
with 100 beds to afford
instruction in Midwifery.
Assistant Surgeon
M.J. Bramley (see image) was appointed as
Superintendent with
Assistant Surgeon Dr. H. H. Goodeve
(see image) as his only
assistant.
Pandit Madhusudan
Gupta, a Baidya Professor of the Native
Medical Institute
was transferred with two assistants from the
Sanskrit College to
the New
Medical College.
The period of study
was for four years and the examination was
conducted under the
supervision of the Committee of the
Council of
Education.
The certificate
qualified them to practice Surgery and
Medicine.
The illustrious band of
teachers started their work on
20th February 1835.
The designation of
the Superintendent Dr. M.J. Bramley was
changed to that of
Principal and his assistant Dr. H.H.Goodeve
to Professor of
Medicine and Anatomy on 5th August 1835.
William B
O’Shaughnessy was appointed as the Professor of
Chemistry and
Materia Medica.
There was no
library, museum, apparatus or hospital to start
with. A few books
and apparatus were transferred from the
abolished Native
Medical Institution to the Medical College.
Deep-rooted national prejudice was the great hurdle to the
study of Anatomy or
dissection.
Professor Goodeve
started demonstration of the parts of
human body using
sheep’s brain, goat’s liver and human
skeletons.
Two skeletons were
purchased through Messrs. Bathgate
& Company of
Calcutta and
other anatomical
preparations were
imported from England .
Mr. Evans was
appointed as the Curator of the Museum.
On 10th
January 1836 Pandit Madhusudan Gupta,
accompanied by four young
students followed Professor
Goodeve to an
outhouse of the Medical College building
and began to dissect a dead
body with his own hands.
This day will ever
be marked in the Annals of Western Medicine
in India when
Indians rose superior to all prejudice and
boldly flung open
the gates of modern scientific medicine
to fellow
countrymen.
In less than 2
years time there was rapid advancement in
the art of
dissection.
In 1848,
Professor Goodeve remarked in his introductory lecture
that his pupils have dissected more
than 500 bodies.
Principal Bramley
died on 19th January 1837.
The teaching
suffered due to paucity of staff and lack of a
College hospital.
The Government
considered revision of staff and a College
Council was formed
with Mr. David Hare, the respected
Philanthropist as
the Secretary and Treasurer, for the regulation
of the affairs of the
College.
Other members of
the College Council were:
1. Dr. Henry
Goodive, Professor of Anatomy and Medicine.
2. Dr. W.B.
Shaughnessy, Professor of Chemistry and Materia
Medica.
3. Dr. C.C.
Egerton, Professor of Surgery and Clinical Surgery.
4. Dr. J.
McCosh, Professor of Clinical Medicine
5. Dr. N. Wallich, Professor of Botany
6. Dr. R. Shaughnessy, Demonstrator of
Anatomy and
Chemistry.
On 1st
April 1838, due to the liberality of Lord Auckland, a ward
of 20 beds was
opened as the nucleus of the first Medical
College
Hospital, from the money saved by abolition of
the post of lecturership of
Clinical Medicine on resignation of
Dr. McCosh.
An out-patient
department was also attached to this hospital
in 1839.
70 patients,
both European and Indian, were treated
in the in-patient
and 200 patients attended the outdoor
dispensary daily in
1839.
The success of this
small hospital induced the Government to
construct a
hospital on a much larger scale at later date.
The construction of
large female hospital for teaching in
Midwifery was also
contemplated.
The first
examination of the New Medical College was
held on the 30th
October, 1838, after three and a half
years' study of
Anatomy, Physiology, Chemistry,
Natural Philosophy, Materia Medica,
Botany, Physics,
Medicine and
Surgery with the exception of Midwifery,
as there was no
provision for the teaching of the
subject.
Examination was
conducted by:
1. Dr. Nicholson,
Surgeon General
2. Dr. Grant,
Surgeon Apothecary to the East India Company
3. Dr. J.
Martin, Presidency Surgeon and Surgeon.
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