Ethel Lily May Thorpe OBE (1908 – December 4, 2001) was a British-Canadian nurse.
Early life and education
editThorpe was born and raised in Norwich, England.[1] During World War II, she served as a nursing sister for the British army.[2]
Career
editAfter the war, Thorpe was appointed Matron of the County Hospital at Shanghai, China.[3] She later traveled to Jamaica where she established a training program for psychiatric nurses.[4] By 1950, she was appointed Matron of Bellevue Hospital, Jamaica.[3] Thorpe also sat on the General Nursing Council of Jamaica.[5] In honour of her contributions, she was the recipient of the 1956 Order of the British Empire.[6]
In 1962, Thorpe was sent further into Jamaica by the Colonel Office to help them gain independence.[7] In 1963, Thorpe immigrated to Canada to take a position as Nursing Consultant for the Sanatorium Board of Manitoba.[1] She also served as co-ordinator for five hospitals.[7]
In 1974, she was honoured by the Canadian Tuberculosis and Respiratory Disease Association as a lifetime member.[8] A few years later, she was the recipient of the 1977 Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal[3] and was awarded the 1981 Florence Nightingale Medal by the International Committee of the Red Cross Society.[1]
Thorpe died on December 4, 2001.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c d "ETHEL LILY MAY THORPE R.N., M.A., M.B.E." passages.winnipegfreepress.com. 4 December 2001. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
- ^ "On the job..." famouscanadianwomen.com. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
- ^ a b c "Ethel Lily May Thorpe (c1908-2001)". mhs.mb.ca. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
- ^ "British nurse tells about training nurses in Jamaica". Winnipeg Tribune. Manitoba. 28 April 1954.
- ^ "Nursing Council". Kingston Gleaner. Kingston. 29 January 1954.
- ^ "The Queen Honours 12 Here". Kingston Gleaner. Kingston. 2 January 1957.
- ^ a b Jager, Manfred (30 March 1963). "She helped Jamaicans accept independence". Winnipeg Tribune. Manitoba.
- ^ "Group to honour Thorpe". Winnipeg Free Press. Manitoba. 11 June 1974.
