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Matron Ida Greaves

At the start of WW1, Ida Greaves was working as a private nurse in London, having left the Hunter for a new adventure.

When war broke out, an aristocratic woman in London named Lady Dudley started organising donations from Australian nurses working in the United Kingdom to help set up a field hospital.

The Australian Voluntary Hospital soon began, with 16 Australian nurses signing up to help. Ida became the matron of the unit, while a former Newcastle-based doctor was made commanding officer.

"She's actually an unsung hero of Australia, because of her length of service of four years, seven months and seven days.

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