Female Australian Nurses in World War One

When war broke out in 1914, the Australian Government raised the first Australian Imperial Force for overseas service. The nurses to staff the medical units, which formed an integral part of the AIF, were recruited from the Australian Army Nursing Service Reserve and from the civil nursing profession.

Senior Officers were more inclined to have trained male soldiers in preference to female nurses. Major General Howse (Director of Medical Services) has been quoted as saying that “the female nurse (as a substitute for the fully trained male nursing orderly) did little toward the actual saving of life in war... although she might promote a more rapid and complete recovery”. General Howse was speaking at a time when the contribution of the Nursing Service to the treatment of the wounded soldiers, at an early stage, had yet to be recognized by the Australian authorities.

The first draft of Sisters left Australia in September 1914 and throughout the war, the Nursing Service served wherever Australian troops were sent. A number were also sent to British medical units in various theatres of war.

They served in places such as Vladivostok, Burma, India, The Persian Gulf, Egypt, Greece, Italy, France and England.

The record of service for these Sisters is a brilliant one, and one which set a very high standard for all who were to follow. The following statistics are noteworthy:

2,139 served overseas

423 served in Australia

25 died

388 were decorated (seven Military Medals were awarded to Australian Nurses for their courage under fire).

An example of one nursing officer’s experience under fire is from Sister Kelly’s diary from the Casualty Clearing Station at the Western Front....

“The noise was so terrific, and the concussion so great that I was thrown to the ground and had no idea where the damage was. I flew through the chest and abdo wards and called out: ‘are you alright boys?’ ‘don’t bother about us’ was the general cry.”

All the hospitals lights were out and there was a faint moon, but the sky overhead was full of searchlights and fragments from the bursting anti-aircraft artillery. She passed the cook running for an adjacent paddock, swearing hard and complaining that the bombs had put his fire out.

Running on, she suddenly fell headlong into a bomb crater...

“I shall never forget the awful climb on hands and feet out of that hole that was about five feet deep with greasy clay and blood (although I did not know then that it was blood).