Enlightenment via Simulation: Crone-ology's'' First Woman

A little known 18th century midwife, Angelique Marguerite Le Boursier (1715-1794) may well be the true founder of modern surgical simulation. This fiercely independent medical practitioner stood equally amongst the many enlightened minds of this period and fought with every modern method to reduce infant/maternal mortality during childbirth. Her original textbook Abrege utilized some of the first color anatomical illustrations, her method of teaching complex birthing techniques to peasant woman throughout France, and most notably her birthing simulator complete with fluids ( wet ware) were all available for close scrutiny. The color illustrations in Abrege remain profoundly effective but the only existent models of her simulator are even more remarkable. Le Boursier du Coudray sought to bring education to the woman and physicians in villages and towns throughout France in response to the population crisis and the high birth morbidity and mortality. Her teaching methods affected untold thousands of medical practitioners, from midwives to surgeons. Voltaire wrote about her and she became an icon of progressive France, but remained ostracized by much of the conventional medical practitioners. She continued to train midwives for 23 years before retiring at the age of nearly 70. Madame du Coudray began to write, illustrate and simulate in the mid 18th century and obtained unprecedented success in bringing to the public the humane practices of modern childbirth with relevant understanding of anatomy and physiology. She is the matron not only of modern simulation methods in healthcare but was the epitome of professional healthcare commitment, educating approximately 10,000 students regardless of social status for free.