History of Nursing in South Australia

Jean Gibson, nee Irvine, was born at Kent Town, South Australia, attended St Joseph's convent, and did clerical work before commencing nursing training at Calvary Hospital in 1932. She later did midwifery at Port Augusta and was then a member of the nursing staff at Burra. She was called up to the Australian Army Nursing Service in 1941. Her first posting was to Darwin where she experienced the Japanese air-raids in February 1942. She next spent a year at Port Moresby and then went with the 2/5 Australian General Hospital to Borneo (Balik Papan) where she remained until peace was declared in 1945. Jean remained with the AANS and in 1946 went to Japan. She returned to Australia in 1952, shortly before her discharge from the army.