Flexner Report

Financed by a group of physicians, educators, and philanthropists, Abraham Flexner visited every medical school in the United States and Canada to assess their standards of education. His report to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching was published as a bulletin of the Carnegie Foundation in 1910. In the aftermath of his report, more than half of all United States medical schools merged or closed by 1935. Medical school curriculums became more standardized, lengthened and academically entrenched in science. During this time, standards for hospital care were developed, improving patient care and outcomes. Teaching hospitals emerged and by 1942 provided clinical sites for training in 15 medical and surgical specialties. The report had one major drawback though in that only a few medical schools remained open that predominately educated women and African Americans.