Ethel Armstrong
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Ethel Armstrong | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1930 (age 95–96) Durham, England |
| Occupation | Radiographer |
| Medical career | |
| Field | Radiography, Nursing |
| Notable works | Co-patron of the NHS Retirement Fellowship |
Ethel Armstrong MBE (born 1930) is a British radiographer. She began working for the National Health Service (NHS) on the day it was established, 5 July 1948, and subsequently played a key role in establishing the NHS Retirement Fellowship.
Ethel Armstrong was born in Durham in 1930. She attended school until the age of 17, then her headmaster recommended that she get a job rather than continue in the sixth form.[1] She was unable to attend university as there were no grants for women to study dentistry or medicine.[1]
Career
On leaving school, Armstrong worked at a large mental health hospital in Newcastle as a "cadet" where she experienced several different departments. Once she was 18 she was able to join the school of radio diagnosis, on the same day as the birth of the NHS: 5 July 1948.[1]
She primarily worked in radiography and radiotherapy from this point forward.[2] Armstrong worked with John Charnley during his early work on hip operations, before he received his knighthood.[1]
Armstrong worked as a tutor and advisor to the Liverpool Breast Screening Service until 1989, when she retired.[3] At the time that she worked for the service, it was an experimental unit and only adopted across the NHS in the 1980s.[4]
During the course of her work, Armstrong earned a master's degree in clinical practice (oncology).[4][5]