SOLDIERS' FRIEND

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23166, 12 October 1938, Page 5

SOLDIERS' FRIEND

HOSPITAL MATRON distinguished career SERVICE IN WAR AND AFTER After 18 years of "active service," during which she has been responsible for the welfare and comfort of thousands of wounded Australian soldiers, Miss Ida O'Dwyer retired on September 30 from -her post as matron of the Caul field Military Hospital. There is no better known or more popular figure among returned army nurses and soldiers than Miss O'Dwyer, and the staff and patients at Caul field said farewell to their matron with deep regret. Miss O'Dwyer actually had been on "active service" since 1914, when she went abroad with the Australian troops. Her life in the intervening years had been spent among wounded soldiers —from the tragic days of casualty clearing stations during the war to the peaceful and happy atmosphere of the Caulfield Hospital, where men still suffering from war disabilities remember only the comradeship of war experiences and forget the horrors. Miss o ! Dwyer left Australia with the first batch of army nurses on tire troopship Kyarra, and served for the first year in' Egypt. After spending eight months in English hospitals. she went to France, where her experiences included more than a year in charge of the 3rd Australian Casualty Clearing Station, moving with the troops through France and into Belgium. " Gift " Hospital in London

After thi3 strenuous period she was sent to Cannes, in the south of France, for a fortnight's rest at one of the famous hotels requisitioned by the Red Cross as convalescent homes for nurses. Miss O'Dwyer then took charge of a "gift" hospital in London for sick Australian nurses at 12 Southwell Gardens. This hospital was the gift of Mrs. T. S. Hall, an Australian woman who had lived for some time in England. It was in every sense a haven for war-wracked nurses. They had every possible comfort and care—and very good food, which few people in England had at the time. Talking of this period. Miss O'Dwyer pays a warm tribute to Sir Henry Maudsley, who was in charge of the nurses in thi* hospital. "He had a marvellous memory," she said, "and never forgot a nurse. He took a personal interest in their affairs, and always tried to arrange that when they were discharged from they were allowed to do the thing they most wanted to do." Service in Australia

When Miss O'Dwyer returned to Australia in 1919 she took charge of No. 16 Australian General Hospital at Macleod, and when that was closed she was transferred to the Caulfield Military Hospital, where she has been for the last 18 years. There were 1000 patients and a staff of 100 nurses in those days. Later the staff was reduced to about 45 nurses, but in recent times the number of patients has steadily increased as the years have taken toll of uar-worn nerves and physical disabilities. At present there are 296 patients and a staff of 56. One reason for Miss O'Dwver's success. and for the affectionate regard in which she is held by everyone in the hospital, is revealed as she talks of the men under her care, whom she describes as "one large happy family." Her sympathetic understanding of their needs and their problems, her sense of humour, and her ease of manner have endeared her to the men who have been in her care during the last 18 years, and to whom she will always remain a friend.