Pattison, Dorothy W. (1832–1878)

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Pattison, Dorothy W. (1832–1878)

English surgical nurse. Name variations: Sister Dora. Born Dorothy Wyndlow Pattison in 1832; died in 1878; sister of Mark Pattison, a scholar, writer, and follower of Cardinal Newman who was once married to Emily Dilke (1840–1904).

In 1864, Dorothy Pattison entered a Church of England Sisterhood of the Good Samaritan, adopting the name Sister Dora. From 1867 to 1877, she was a surgical nurse and had sole charge of a new hospital in Walsall. Pattison had great skill in surgery and was tireless in her philanthropy. She was beloved among the poorer classes among whom she labored. A window was placed in her memory in the parish church, and a statue of her was erected in Walsall.