Margaret Fay Hopcraft (nee Ahern) as a captain nursing sister 8th Field Ambulance later 1st Australian Field Hospital, South Vietnam 1967-1968, interviewed by Jan Bassett

Places	Asia: Vietnam, Phuoc Tuy Province, Nui Dat Oceania: Australia, New South Wales, Sydney, Ingleburn Oceania: Australia, Queensland, Brisbane, Yeronga Oceania: New Guinea1, Papua New Guinea
Accession Number	S01816
Collection type	Sound
Measurement	48 min 8 sec
Object type	Oral history
Physical description	1/4 inch sound tape reel; BASF LP 35; 3 3/4 ips/9.5 cm.s; stereo; 5 inch
Maker	Hopcraft, Margaret Fay Bassett, Jan
Date made	8 September 1986
Access	Open
Conflict	Vietnam, 1962-1975
Copyright	Item copyright: © Australian War Memorial This item is licensed under CC BY-NC
Copying Provisions	Copyright restrictions apply. Only personal, non-commercial, research and study use permitted. Permission of copyright holder required for any commercial use and/or reproduction.
Source credit to	AWM Special Project Fellowship Award

Description

Early life; commenced civilian nursing in 1958; enlisted 4 July 1965; discusses Matron Mickie Sayer a prisoner of war of the Japanese during the Second World War; first posting to the 2nd Camp Hospital Ingleburn NSW; left Australia in 1966 in the first batch of nurses posted to 8th Field Ambulance, 1st Australian Field Hospital, South Vietnam; describes living and working conditions; describes casualty treatment; treating Vietnamese patients; supplies; recreation; visit to American 1st Division Headquarters; description of uniforms; professional relationship with doctors, American nurses and medics; returned to Australia in May 1968 and posted to the 1st Military Hospital, Yeronga in Brisbane; attitude to conscription and Australia's participation in the Vietnam War; posted to the medical centre at Terama Barracks, Papua New Guinea in November 1970; description of patients and illnesses treated; working and living conditions; returned to Australia in February 1972; discharged in April 1972; worked as a civilian nurse in an army hospital in Victoria 1981-86. END OF INTERVIEW
A transcript of this recording may be available. For further information please contact the Sound section.

Listen to Margaret Fay Hopcraft (nee Ahern) as a captain nursing sister 8th Field Ambulance later 1st Australian Field Hospital, South Vietnam 1967-1968, interviewed by Jan Bassett