Baroness Manningham-Buller
Former Head of MI5 & Former Chair of the Wellcome Trust
Claire Bertschinger
Dr Dame Claire Bertschinger DBE DL
Head of Tropical Nursing
Claire was a young field nurse in Ethiopia when Michael Buerk interviewed her for a BBC report on the famine. She was irritated by his 'stupid questions,' but told him her grimmest task was to decide which children might survive if let in to the feeding station, and which must be left to die. The report inspired Geldof to set up Live Aid. Claire explains that everybody can make a difference and create value, not just be a consumer.
Speaking Topics
- Resilience
- Science
Biography
In 1984 Claire Bertschinger was a field nurse in Mekele, northern Ethiopia, in charge of distributing the limited food rations at her disposal. She was forced to choose the children and adults with the best chance of survival and, in her own words, ‘felt like a Nazi commandant, deciding who would live and who would die’. When Michael Buerk approached with a camera crew and questions, Claire outlined the scale of the tragedy taking place every day.
The impact of Buerk’s famine report is widely accepted. When Claire met Bob Geldof, he introduced her to Richard Curtis, scriptwriter and co-founder of Comic Relief with the words, ‘This is the girl who started it all’. She has also worked in other trouble spots including Lebanon, Afghanistan, Sudan, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
In her autobiography, Moving Mountains, Claire relives the harrowing experiences of her career, as well as the unexpected moments of kindness. She is now head of tropical nursing at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Claire has been awarded the Florence Nightingale Medal and was honoured for her inspirational nursing career with the Woman of the Year - Window to the World Award and the Human Rights and Nursing Award from The International Centre for Nursing Ethics. In 2010 she was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
“Claire's contribution ensured we went home re-energised and enthused to continue our work.”
Engaging, interesting and exactly what we were looking for in a speaker. She was truly inspirational and her stories were just incredible.
We have never heard a room so silent and still; especially at the end of a long day. The session generated lots of comments and was a really memorable end to the day.
Claire gave a very motivational and inspiring talk to a group of health visitors, school nurses and students. She shared her own personal experiences of working with the Red Cross and was able to demonstrate that you can achieve so much with very little.
The entire staff group was fully engaged with Claire’s speech – there was a huge interest and lots of questions were put to her. I have since received a lot of positive feedback from the staff as to how inspired they felt in listening to her story.
"Claire's contribution ensured we went home re-energised and enthused to continue our work."
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