Victor Ratten
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Victor Ratten | |
|---|---|
 Ratten during World War I | |
| Born | 12 December 1878 Kew, Victoria, Australia |
| Died | 30 December 1962 (aged 84) Hobart, Tasmania, Australia |
| Alma mater | Harvey Medical College |
| Occupation | Surgeon |
| Spouse |
Blanche Greaves (m. 1907) |
Victor Richard Ratten (12 December 1878 – 30 December 1962) was an Australian surgeon and hospital administrator. He was known for his long involvement with Royal Hobart Hospital, serving as superintendent from 1917 to 1936 and as a surgeon until his death in 1962. He came into conflict with the medical establishment in Tasmania on a number of occasions and was the subject of a royal commission into his qualifications in 1918.
Ratten was born on 12 December 1878 in Kew, Victoria. He was the son of Eliza Ann (née Gordon) and George William Ratten. His father was a schoolteacher and was later ordained as an Anglican minister.[1]
Ratten spent part of his childhood in Port Fairy, Victoria.[1] He and his family later moved to Forbes, New South Wales, where his father established a private school, the Lachlan College. He was a talented sportsman as a youth, winning several cycling championships. After leaving school, Ratten worked for the Union Bank of Australia in Forbes until 1898, when he and a friend announced their intention to travel the world by bicycle. Their progress to Sydney was reported in local newspapers but they did not proceed further.[2]
After serving an apprenticeship with a dentist in Sydney, Ratten returned to country New South Wales in 1899 and began practising as a dentist in West Wyalong.[2] By 1903 he had moved to Brisbane. He later spent time in the United States and in March 1907 acquired a diploma of medicine at Harvey Medical College in Chicago. The college was short-lived and the validity of Ratten's qualification was later the subject of debate.[1]