One of the first women in Queensland to study medicine

Eleanor was educated at Brisbane Girls Grammar School, where she excelled academically, winning the Grahame and John West gold medals in the 1896 senior examination, and achieving entrance to the Medical Programme at the University of Sydney. Despite suffering typhoid fever during her time at University, Eleanor persevered, and graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine and Master of Surgery in 1903.

After graduating and a short residency at the Women’s Hospital in Sydney, Eleanor moved back to Brisbane and became the first female Resident Medical Officer at the Brisbane General Hospital whilst also working at the Hospital for Sick Children. In 1907 she entered general practice at 69 Wickham Terrace, serving as honorary out-patient physician to the children's hospital and as an anaesthetist. Appointed the first medical officer in the Department of Public Instruction on 1 January 1911, Eleanor established principles for the medical examination of children. Eleanor visited Charleville, Cunnamulla, and other regional Queensland towns where she conducted research on hookworm disease, and also reported on ophthalmia.

At the outbreak of the First World War, Eleanor became one of only fifteen female doctors in Australia to voluntarily serve abroad, travelling to England at her own expense. In May 1916, Eleanor enlisted as a lieutenant in the Royal Army Medical Corps, where she served with distinction at the Endell Street Military Hospital in London, staffed entirely by women. The hospital at Endell Street was established by two pioneering suffragette doctors, Dr Flora Murray and Dr Louisa Garrett Anderson, who suspended their campaigning to join the war effort.

Dr Eleanor Bourne was a key part of the development and success of the hospital—working alongside Flora and Louise to create a 573-bed hospital staffed by female surgeons, doctors and nurses. During the height of the war the women surgeons, including Eleanor, routinely carried out over twenty operations on wounded soldiers each day and the brilliance and bravery of this extraordinary group of women has been well documented.

Following the end of the war the hospital was closed, and Eleanor moved on to become the Assistant Medical Officer to the English city of Carlisle, responsible for organising child welfare services and for the new maternity hospital. Forced to resign due to ill health in June 1937, Eleanor left Carlisle and returned to Australia and settled in Manly, Brisbane.

Dr Eleanor Bourne was a member of the Queensland branch of the British Medical Association for fifty years and was made an honorary life member in 1953. Eleanor and her family had supported the Women’s College at the University of Queensland since its foundation in 1914, and the Bourne Wing was named in the family’s honour. Dr Eleanor Bourne's legacy as a leader in medicine and a champion of public health continues to inspire future generations of healthcare professionals.