Lowitja (Lois) O’Donoghue CBE AC DSG FACN (Hon) (1932– )
Declared an Australian National Living Treasure, Lowitja became the first Aboriginal person to train as a nurse at Royal Adelaide Hospital.
Vivian Bullwinkel AO MBE ARRC (1915–2000)
A trailblazing nurse, Vivian’s story of surviving the Bangka Island massacre and advancing the profession is legendary.
Olga Kanitsaki AM FACN
A non-English speaking migrant, Olga not only became a nurse but paved way for transcultural nursing in Australia.
Olive Eva Anstey CBE MBE (1920–1983)
Olive, who chose nursing against her family’s wishes, was only the second Australian nurse to be the President of ICN.
Joan Estelle Godfrey OBE FACN (DLF) (1922–2019)
Joan was a strong, outspoken advocate for improved standards in education and greater professional development of nurses.
Patricia ‘Pat’ Slater OBE (1918–1990)
Pat, considered a modern leader in nurse education, played a major role in progressing hospital-based training to tertiary-based education.
Lucy Osburn (1836–1891)
A Nightingale trained nurse, Lucy is credited with having played a critical role in establishing modern nursing in Australia.
Annie Moriah Sage CBE RRC (1895–1969)
Annie was the inaugural president of the College of Nursing Australia and key in establishing the Australian Nurses Memorial Centre.
Muriel Knox Doherty RRC (1896–1988)
A role model for compassion, Muriel devoted herself to caring for prisoners of war at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in Germany.
Perditta McCarthy GBE RRC & Bar (1916–2012)
A distinguished military nurse, Perditta’s career culminated in the highest promotion any nursing officer has reached – to Brigadier.