Safiye Ali

Safiye Ali (2 February 1894 – 5 July 1952) or Hatice Safiye Ali was a Turkish physician. She was the second female doctor in the Republic of Turkey. She graduated from the Robert College in Istanbul. She treated soldiers in the Balkan Wars, World War I and the Turkish War of Independence. She studied medicine in Germany in 1916 and opened her office in Istanbul in 1923.

Safiye researched maternal and infant health. She was also the first woman to teach medicine in Turkey.

Early life
Safiye Ali was born in Istanbul. Her parents are Hasene (mother), and Ali Kırat Pasha (father). Her grandfather, Hacı Emin Pasha was the sheik of Mecca for 17 years and was the founder of five foundations in Mecca which still teaches students today.

Education
In 1916, Safiye graduated from Arnavutköy American College for Girls and was sent to the University of Würzburg (Julius-Maximilians-Universität) at Würzburg. Her education was partly funded by the Ottoman Ministry of Education. During her studies, she took lessons in philosophy and history.

The Bavarian Ministry of Education of Germany did not initially issue Safiye with the paper to take the Physical exam (the first examination of medicine) due to her being a graduate of the American College. She eventually took the exam in 1918. She graduated in 1921. She became a physician and returned to Istanbul. She then returned to Germany to specialize in gynecology and pediatrics. She married her husband, Dr. Ferdinand Krekeler, who later adopted the name of Ferdi Ali.

Career
In June 1923, in Turkey, Safiye obtained her license to practise medicine, becoming the first female doctor in the country. She opened her first practice in Cağaloğlu. Safiye advertised her practice in the newspapers, as other doctors of the time did.

When she began, she had difficulty obtaining patients. Wealthy women did not trust her work as a doctor because she was a woman. Poor women would seek her services, but they did not want to pay the full visit fee for a female physician. There was no support in the medical community, either. In response to those who wished to pay a lower visit fee, she charged the same as her male colleagues. Exceptions were made for patients who were unable to pay, but Safiye Ali fought for "equal pay for equal work".

Safiye Ali was the first female lecturer to teach medicine to girls by giving gynecology and obstetrics lessons at the first girls' medical school established within the American College.

Safiye Ali resigned from Süt Damlası, as she was treated unfairly by her colleagues. This situation was met with great sorrow by her patients. Women organized protests, first in front of the Hilal-Al-Ahmar society, and then in front of the house of Fuat Bey, who was appointed to replace her. Against her rivals, who claimed that she was the organizer of these protests, Ali reiterated that these allegations were ridiculous and that the issue was produced by male doctors who begrudge the success of women, and she would not withdraw her resignation. At the height of her career, she was blocked from helping her patients.

Safiye was repeatedly harassed by her male colleagues and attempts were made to silence her with accusations made against her, continuing her struggle. After being diagnosed with cancer, she settled in Germany. She continued her services there, despite her illness, during the years of World War II. She died at 58 years old in Dortmund, Germany.

Works on Breastfeeding
Süt Damlası became effective with Safiye Ali's work on the importance of breastfeeding. She emphasized the superiority of breast milk over all milk and encouraged women to breastfeed. She organized training for malnourished children to have a healthy diet. She also sent nurses to check the implementation of the education, voluntarily without any charge. She also established the Hilal-Al-Ahmar Ladies Center Little Children Practice which resembled Süt Damlası but the ages of the children differed.

Women's People Party and Safiye Ali
Safiye was a member of the delegation in the Women's People Party which promoted the active participation of women in politics and emphasized the work to be done in terms of helping children. However, since this party was not allowed to operate, they continued to organize under the name of the Turkish Women's Union.

She served in the Women's Union as the Head of the Health Committee and also worked to end prostitution. She worked on opening a girls' dormitory for any girls who were forced into prostitution.

Legacy

 * A family health centre in Istanbul is named after her.
 * On 2 February 2021, Google celebrated her 127th birthday with a Google Doodle.
 * On 30 November 2022, a street in Dortmund was named after her.