I'm so intrigued by this antique Little Country Doctor kit, made back in the times before all toys were cruddy plastic.
Inside, the doctor's kit comes with a toy stethoscope and glasses, toy thermometer, little vials for pretend medicines, gauze bandages, and a Red Cross bandage and cotton set. The fact this set still has all its original items makes me wonder if a real child was never allowed to actually play with this. Oh look, there are even little notes for writing in the chart, and a play diploma for the little doctor.
Now compare the lovely vintage set to this disappointing plastic 1970s doctor kit. How boring.
In the 1950s we can see toy doctor kits starting to use plastic, like this Hasbro Life Junior Doctor Kit. It still has nifty accessories, such as candy pills, a hypodermic needle and an eye chart.
It seems like doctor's kits used to come with more accessories than modern toy kits do. This Tiny Town doctor's kit is from the 1940s or 1950s and came with lots of bandages, little jars, cotton, tape, and other supplies for pretend play.
This Dandy Doctor kit from the 1940s is similar, and also includes a good assortment of play medical supplies.
The Playtime Kit comes with two things I haven't seen in the other vintage toys: a plastic speculum and a tiny rubber hot water bottle.
I love the retro illustrations on this blue Hasbro Canadian Playtime kit. Inside, the toys are plastic and boring. But they seem to have included two sets of everything, so two children could play together in their pretend hospital.
Now we jump ahead to the 1970s, with this Fisher Price doctor's kit. Colorful, durable, and with plenty of accessories (a hammer for finding knee reflexes, and a tool to check the eyes). But somehow don't you think it's missing a lot of the charm of the vintage toys?
Here's what a modern toy doctor's kit looks like now: This Elmo doctor kit is colorful and cute, but is all plastic. There are no paper diplomas, no cotton bandages, no gauze, and no little glass vials of candy pills.
At least Haba presents a modern alternative. This Haba toy medical kit comes in a tin container, includes wooden tools and accessories, and offers a paper prescription pad and a tiny glass vial for pretend medicine. Cool!
This contemporary FAO Schwartz doctor kit is also made almost entirely out of wood. But I find it lacking in charm and it doesn't look like a toy I'd want to play with personally. There's such a thing as being too simplistic.
Now here's a contemporary doctor's kit I really like. It's by Lilliputiens, the premiere luxury plush toy company in Belgium. Everything here is made of ultra soft, colorful plush fabric. That sure would make a checkup a lot easier to endure!
