Reflecting on the many obstacles she encountered in her life, Zakrzewska decided that she wanted to aid aspiring female doctors in some way. She believed that women were in desperate need of a hospital in which they were not denied the facilities for clinical instruction and could practice medicine. The New England Hospital for Women and Children opened its doors on July 1, 1862. The goals of this college were to provide women with medical treatment from physicians of their own sex, to provide women with the opportunity to experience the clinical application of medicine, and to train nurses. She stressed her intentions to prove that women were just as capable as men to run a hospital and practice medicine.