Matron Irene Melville Drummond (26 July 1905 – 16 February 1942) was an

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

nurse Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. She was the most senior-ranking among the 22 Australian nurses killed in the Bangka Island massacre on 16 February 1942. She was

mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

in 1946 ''for gallant and distinguished service in Malaya in 1942''. Her last recorded words, uttered in a whisper as she and her colleagues were being marched into the sea to be shot, were "Chin up, girls. I'm proud of you and I love you all."

Citations

{{DEFAULTSORT:Drummond, Irene Melville 1905 births 1942 deaths Australian Army personnel of World War II Australian military nurses Australian prisoners of war Australian women nurses Female wartime nurses Women in the Australian military Women in World War II World War II nurses World War II prisoners of war held by Japan Australian military personnel killed in World War II

See also

Citations