Jean Elsie Ferguson (15 July 1909 – 30 January 1979) was an Australian Army nurse who served in

World War II 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 ...

and later became matron of a repatriation hospital in Perth.

Early life and education

Ferguson was born on 15 July 1909 in the Perth suburb of Guildford, the sixth child of John Frederick Geary and Elsie Sarah (née Coppin) Robinson. Ferguson was educated at Perth College, then trained as a nurse at

Royal Perth Hospital Royal Perth Hospital (RPH) is a 450-bed adult and teaching hospital located on the northeastern edge of the central business district of Perth, Western Australia. History The hospital traces its history back to the first colonial hospital, whi ...

from 1930 to 1933.

Career

Ferguson worked in Perth hospitals after graduating and joined the Australian Army Nursing Service Reserve in January 1939. In April 1940 she was appointed staff nurse in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) and was sent to England where she served in the 2nd/3rd Australian General Hospital,

Godalming, Surrey Godalming is a market town and civil parish in southwest Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, at the confluence of the Rivers Wey and Ock. The civil parish covers and includes the settleme ...

. From there she was sent to the Middle East in 1941 and was then sent back to Australia in 1942, to work at Warwick and Toowoomba military hospitals. Ferguson married Captain John Boyd Ferguson, AIF, in February 1943. He was killed in an accident in September 1943 while serving in New Guinea. Ferguson was herself posted to New Guinea in October 1943. In 1945 she was posted to the 110th Military Hospital in Nedlands, Western Australia. It became a rehabilitation hospital in 1947, where Ferguson was matron and was later renamed the

Hollywood Private Hospital Hollywood Private Hospital (Hollywood) is an acute care hospital located in Nedlands, Western Australia. Hollywood is Western Australia's largest private hospital, with more than 900 licensed beds. The hospital is part of Ramsay Health Care Gro ...

Awards and honours

In the 1953 Queen's Birthday Honours, Ferguson was made an

Associate of the Royal Red Cross The Royal Red Cross (RRC) is a military decoration awarded in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth for exceptional services in military nursing. Foundation The award was established on 27 April 1883 by Queen Victoria, with a single class of Mem ...

(ARRC). Ferguson was appointed MBE in the 1963 Queen's Birthday Honours and in 1969 she was one of the recipients of the

Florence Nightingale Medal The Florence Nightingale Medal is an international award presented to those distinguished in nursing and named after British nurse Florence Nightingale. The medal was established in 1912 by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), f ...

Death

Ferguson died on 30 January 1979 in Hollywood Private Hospital, Nedlands, Western Australia. She had not remarried.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Jean 1909 births 1979 deaths Australian Members of the Order of the British Empire Associate Members of the Royal Red Cross Florence Nightingale Medal recipients Australian Army personnel of World War II Female wartime nurses Women in the Australian military World War II nurses Created via preloaddraft 20th-century Australian women Australian Army officers