# Elizabeth Cockayne

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**Dame Elizabeth Cockayne**, (29 October 1894 – 4 July 1988) was [Chief Nursing Officer](/source/Chief_Nursing_Officer_(United_Kingdom)) from the inception of the [National Health Service](/source/National_Health_Service) in 1948 until her retirement a decade later in 1958.[1] She was succeeded by Dame [Kathleen Raven](/source/Kathleen_Raven).

## Career

Born in [Burton-on-Trent](/source/Burton-on-Trent),[1] Cockayne decided to become a nurse due to her own experiences with ill health, such as [smallpox](/source/Smallpox) and [scarlatina](/source/Scarlatina). She was trained in [Plymouth](/source/Plymouth) and [Sheffield](/source/Sheffield). In 1954 she chaired the [World Health Organization](/source/World_Health_Organization)'s Expert Committee on Nursing.[2]

## Awards/honours

She was awarded the **Florence Nightingale Medal** by the International Council of Nurses. In 1955 she was appointed a Dame Commander of the [Order of the British Empire](/source/Order_of_the_British_Empire) (DBE).[1]

## Death

Dame Elizabeth Cockayne died at Rushett Cottage, Littleheath Lane, [Cobham, Surrey](/source/Cobham,_Surrey) on 4 July 1988, aged 93.[1]

## References

1. "Dame Elizabeth Cockayne obituary". *The Times*. 6 July 1988. p. 14.

1. [UK Online - 1894](http://web.ukonline.co.uk/m.gratton/19th%20Century/1894.htm) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20040705042545/http://web.ukonline.co.uk/m.gratton/19th%20Century/1894.htm) 2004-07-05 at the Wayback Machine, ukonline.co.uk; accessed 7 April 2016.

## External links

- "Cockayne, Dame Elizabeth (1894–1988), nursing administrator and teacher". 47638.
- [NCBI site](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Elizabeth Cockayne](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Cockayne) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Cockayne?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.