Against a backdrop of War, the Spanish Flu epidemic and financial strain, Mater continues to work to provide healthcare.

In 1912 Mater was registered as a training school for nurses and the first 14 secular probationers entered the formal training school for nurses in 1914, with the completion of St Mary's Nurses Home, to ensure an adequate supply of nurses with appropriate qualifications. The Sisters of Mercy nurses were trained separately at Mater Private Hospital.

In July 1912 the Mater Public Hospital outpatient department opened in its own specially built brick building. The service treated 1440 people in its first six months. The influx was partly a result of the closure of the government’s South Brisbane ‘depot’ where needy people were able to access both medical care and other necessities.

Two years later in 1914, extensions to the surgical ward at Mater Public Hospital were completed, just in time to care for soldiers returning from World War I. Twenty beds were made available for soldiers, as Mater worked to provide healthcare during a time of financial strain. During the war, appeals to the public were suspended and many of Mater’s staff were on war service; all contributing to, as Mother Patrick Potter stated ‘slender resources.’

In its first three years of operation, Mater Public Hospital provided care to more than 3000 inpatients, without any financial support from the government. The Sisters of Mercy set out to change this situation, and after much work, in June 1913 Mother Patrick Potter secured a £1000 grant for Mater. By 1916, funding for the hospital came from patient fees, donations, government subsidies and community contributions.

The government’s annual £1000 subsidy did not increase, despite the increasing number of patients cared for at Mater. Mother Patrick Potter would again appeal for further funds, and again, she proved successful—securing £2000 to support patient care at Mater.

This funding would be stretched by the Spanish influenza, which would result in St Laurence’s School (adjacent to Mater) becoming a special flu hospital to help cater for the outbreak. Only three of Mater’s trainee nurses avoided the illness, which took a significant toll on staff, but also finances. Some relief came in 1920, when the State Labor Government announced that Mater Public Hospital would receive part proceeds from the Government’s Golden Casket Art Union on the same basis as other public hospitals.

In the midst of the Spanish Flu epidemic, Queensland’s first hospital laboratory was established at Mater by Dr J. Duhig and Sr Mary Chanel England. During the 1920s, the laboratory was essential in aiding diagnoses of many conditions, prompting Sr Mary Chanel to highlight the importance of scientific work saying that while it is ‘costly and shows no immediate cash return’, medical science is worthy of ‘generous endowment.’

Mater would like to acknowledge Helen Gregory, author of Expressions of Mercy. Mater has used information, as appropriate, from this publication to support the creation of this content.