Commanding a military hospital during the First World War, Louisa Garrett Anderson transformed surgical practice through the clinical refinement of antiseptic wound treatments. Her work at the Endell Street Military Hospital in London proved that an all-female medical staff could operate effectively under the authority of the Royal Army Medical Corps, treating nearly 50,000 soldiers between 1915 and 1919.
Medical Education and Early Clinical Practice
Born in 1873 in Aldeburgh, Anderson attended St Leonards School before training at the London School of Medicine for Women. She earned her Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery in 1898, followed by a Doctor of Medicine in 1900. After observing surgical procedures in Paris and Chicago, she encountered significant institutional barriers in the United Kingdom due to gender bias. She spent her early career at the New Hospital for Women, founded by her mother, Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, where she performed gynaecological and general surgical operations.
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Anderson became a member of the Women's Social and Political Union in 1907. Her political involvement included the 1910 protest against Prime Minister Asquith, later known as Black Friday, where she faced violence from police and bystanders. In 1912, she served a sentence for breaking a window at 47 Rutland Gate. She later participated in the formation of the United Suffragists in 1914, alongside figures including Mary Neal and George Lansbury.
The Women's Hospital Corps and Wartime Surgery
Upon the outbreak of World War I, Anderson and her partner, physician Flora Murray, established the Women's Hospital Corps. They opened a facility at Claridge's in Paris, which was later recognized as a British auxiliary hospital. In 1915, the War Office commissioned the pair to lead the Endell Street Military Hospital. There, Anderson collaborated with pathologist Helen Chambers to test bismuth, iodoform, and paraffin paste, known as BIPP. Published in The Lancet, her research demonstrated that BIPP reduced the necessity for frequent bandage changes by 80 percent, saving patients from significant pain and discomfort.
Final Years and Legacy
Anderson received a CBE in 1917 for her wartime contributions. In 1939, she published a biography of her mother. She died in 1943, and her ashes were scattered over the South Downs. Her professional life is documented in the archives at The Women's Library at the London School of Economics, and she is memorialised on the statue of Millicent Fawcett in Parliament Square.
Fast facts
- Born: 1873, Aldeburgh
- Died: 1943, Belfast; Brighton
- Education: London School of Medicine for Women
- Key Award: Commander of the Order of the British Empire (1917)
- Professional Role: Chief Surgeon of the Women's Hospital Corps
- Primary Medical Contribution: BIPP antiseptic treatment
Questions readers ask
What was the significance of BIPP?
It was an antiseptic ointment that allowed bandages to remain on wounds for longer periods, reducing the frequency of dressing changes by 80 percent.
What was the Endell Street Military Hospital?
It was a large military hospital run entirely by women under the Royal Army Medical Corps, treating nearly 50,000 soldiers between 1915 and 1919.
Achievements
- Commander of the Order of the British Empire — 1917
