AUDIO
Dame Cicely Saunders was born on June 1918 in Barnet, Hertfordshire, the eldest of three children. She was educated at the Rodean School in Brighton, before going on to read PPE (Philosophy, Politics and Economics) at St Anne’s College, Oxford.
Whilst there, World War II broke out, and it was then that Dame Cicely decided she wanted to do something useful.
Despite some opposition from family she trained as a nurse at St Thomas's Hospital in London, qualifying in 1944. However, due to problems with her back, she reluctantly returned to Oxford to complete her degree after the war.
Her determination to provide care for patients was evident when, within a year, she completed her degree as well as gaining a diploma in Public Health.
This allowed her to return to St Thomas’ where she worked as a Lady Almoner, known now as a medical social worker.
RESOURCES
The items below will require an internet connection (WiFi, 3G or 4G)
LISTEN
As part of the St Christopher’s Oral History Project, hear from Deborah Holman who currently is a Lecturer at St Christopher’s and who worked alongside Dame Cicely for the final three years before her death.
LISTEN
Dame Cicely Saunders on Desert Island Discs, first broadcast on Friday 10 Feb 1995
WATCH
Dame Cicely Saunders: Training notes as a student nurse, 1942-1944
© King’s College London Archives and the Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives, 2020 Featuring: Kate O’Brien, Archives Collections Manager. Production: Jessica Borge.
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Desert Island Discs
Sue Lawley's full interview with Dame Cicely Saunders, first broadcast on Friday 10 Feb 1995