ABSTRACT
The first generation of female doctors appeared in the Nordic countries in the late nineteenth century. As newcomers in a male-dominated space, the women had to define their roles as medical experts. They showed a particular interest in two leading medical discourses of the time: gynaecology and eugenics. The practical combination of both can be observed in the providing of prophylactic health care, from women for women, in matters related to sexuality, sexual hygiene and reproduction. An example of this practice was health advice, in the form of publications and advice offices by Finnish and Swedish female doctors, which were widely received by the female population. How did the female physicians understand the concept of public health? What was the focus of their work to improve public health? Further, how far did eugenic ideology play a role in their understanding of prophylactic health care and public health? Can prophylactic sexual health advice be understood in terms of positive eugenics or negative eugenics? Is this division indeed applicable in this case? Finally, the chapter gives an outlook on whether early health advice practices for women in reproductive questions can be understood as a forerunner of the development of prenatal counselling in the Nordic countries after the Second World War.
