Page 57 - QARANC Spring 2024

The Gazette QARANC Association 57
‘Fortitude and selflessness’ of our WW2 nurses
Joy Duffield from NI Branch was delighted to attend a Royal College of Nursing NI event honouring nurses from Ireland in World War Two.
The beautiful surroundings of Belfast City Hall hosted the launch of the book ‘Nurses Voices from the Second World War.’ The event was a chance for me to catch up with former work and army colleagues and hear extracts from the book, including readings from relatives of nurses who served in the war.
To learn that so many nurses from across Ireland made such a significant contribution to the war effort was of great professional pride. Many died in tragic circumstances through Blitz and various battles on land and at sea. It was horrifying to discover the experiences which nurses who were prisoners of war endured in the Far East following the fall of Hong Kong and Singapore.
Many nurses from across the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland applied to train in British hospitals and enlisted with the Queen Alexandra’s Imperial Nursing Service Reserve (QAIMNSR). At the outbreak of WW2 there were 624 full-time nurses serving with the QAs and at its conclusion there were 12,000 serving abroad with British troops.
It became normal procedure of placing Nurses close to battle fronts. Indeed, General Montgomery was one of the Army personnel who acknowledged the importance of nurses on the front line because of their positive impact on troop morale.
In total 52 nurses (17 from NI and 35 from the ROI) lost their lives during the Second World War. The stories from those who came home are harrowing, their fortitude and selflessness should be acknowledged and applauded.