Voluntary Aid Detachment (VADs)

Voluntary Aid Detachment

During the First World War many women provided nursing care of military personnel as Voluntary Aid Detachment (VADs). Established in 1909 by the British War Office and managed by the British Red Cross Society and the St John Ambulance Society, the Voluntary Aid Detachment provided volunteer nurses to hospitals (and other sites) during wartime. 

By 1914, there were 74,000 members of the VAD, two thirds were women.  Through the course of war, they were posted to Belgium, Egypt, Malta, Salonika, Russia, Serbia, Romania and Italy.  Though often untrained, VADs, provided essential help to hospitals short of staff.  

As war intensified, male orderlies were transferred to the front and more VADs were required for work in New Zealand Hospitals. Colin Gordon an orderly with the New Zealand Medical Forces, described the situation in Brockenhurst ‘the orderlies, the men, were almost removed, except for the fetch and carry jobs from the ward. We had more nurses and hosts of VADs – New Zealand and English – who did the actual nursing.’   

Often New Zealand VADs were New Zealanders who already lived overseas or travelled to offer their services, they were not a part of New Zealand’s official military structure.

Online Cenotaph has been able to identify approximately four hundred New Zealanders who served as VADs during the First World War. With special thanks to Glyn Harper, and Sherayl McNabb and their research in helping to idenify these VADs. 

Further Information 

You can read more about Margaret Swarbrick, an English VAD who served at New Zealand General Hospital, Brockenhust.

You can search for the records of VADs on the British Red Cross website. 

Harper, Glyn. For King and Other Countries: The New Zealanders who fought in other services in the First World War. (Massey University Press, 2019). 

McNabb, Sherayl. 100 years New Zealand Military Nursing. (Sherayl McNabb, 2015). 

Rogers, Anna. While You’re Away: New Zealand Nurses at War 1899 – 1948 (Auckland: Auckland University Press, 2003). 

Rogers, Anna. With them through hell: New Zealand Medical Services in the First World War. (Massey University Press, 2018). 

Results

Displaying 1 - 20 of 470 records

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Family name A-Z Family name Z-A First name A-Z First name Z-A Force War Service # Relevance

Record ID	Photo	Family name	First names	Force	Wars	Service #		Preliminary
176818		MacDonald	Elizabeth	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
176819		McLaren	Lena	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
176816		Cameron	Ruth Catherine	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
176817		MacDonald	Wilhelmina	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
179517		Dobie	Ellen Locker	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
176820		McDonnell	Mysie	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
184684		Saunders	Ina	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
179518		Dobie	Beatrix	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
C132505		Turton	Gwenyth	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
C138928		O'Leary	Norah	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
C133376		Pugh	Veronica	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
198863		Seddoon	Ruth	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
C145245		Hare	Florence E.	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
C136839		Hodge	E. R.	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
C139261		Jamieson	Lucy Isobel	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
C130218		Luxford	Gladys Violet		World War I, 1914-1918	N/N
C145297		Page	Minnie Inglis	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
180767		Chapple	Elizabeth Ewing	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
C139871		Butcher	Ivy Pearl	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918
180768		Chapple	Louisa	Civilian	World War I, 1914-1918

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The development of the Online Cenotaph is an ongoing process; updates, new images and records are added weekly. In some cases, records have yet to be confirmed by Museum staff, and there could be mistakes or omissions in the information provided.