Global Health
Leadership Office

International Nursing Leader Passes

Virginia M. Ohlson Died Peacefully on April 10, 2010

Faculty, students, staff, and alumni of the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Nursing are mourning the loss of Virginia M. Ohlson, RN, PhD, who died of natural causes on Saturday, April 10, 2010. She was 95 years old. We lost one of our giant leaders in international nursing!

Dr. Ohlson devoted her life to providing professional nursing education and service around the world - most notably in post-war Japan where she made outstanding contributions to shaping and developing nursing as a civilian nurse serving in the Nursing Affairs Division of the Public Health and Welfare Section of the General Headquarters, Supreme Command for Allied Powers, headed by General Douglas MacArthur.

"They needed people to help them attain their goals. Also, the re-establishment of nursing education and practice during the Occupation could not have occurred without the core of Japanese nurses who had been prepared prior to the war in such educational programs as the St Luke's Hospital School of Nursing in Tokyo." [Fondiller, S.H., Nurs OutLook 1999;47:108-13].

Dr. Ohlson returned to Japan in 1951 at the invitation of the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission (ABCC), whose purpose was to determine the effects of radiation on the populations of Hiroshima and Nagaski. Dr. Ohlson provided oversight to eight health clinics staffed by Japanese nurses.

In 1971, Dr. Ohlson was appointed interim Dean of the UIC College of Nursing, where she later founded The Office for International Studies - now The Office of Global Health Leadership (GHLO) - to foster international and interdisciplinary health programs. The office functions as a liaison with other administrative units, providing linkages relevant to international health to educational institutions and agencies in the U.S. and abroad. Due to Dr. Ohlson’s efforts, UIC GHLO is widely recognized internationally as a major site for the promotion of global health in nursing education, practice, research, and consultation.

Virginia Ohlson returned to Japan in 1991 where she was awarded the Butterfly, the Third Order of the Precious Crown, by his Majesty the Emperor of Japan in recognition of meritorious service to the Japanese people. She was the first nurse, and the first non-Japanese citizen to receive this prestigious honor.

Dr. Ohlson is survived by her sister Dorothy Lundbom, nephews Jack R. Lundbom and Karl Bandemer, and nieces Virginia K. Larson and Christine Chidester. Services will be held Saturday, April 17th, 11 AM at North Park Covenant Church, 5250 North Christiana Avenue, Chicago, IL 60625-4795.

In lieu of flowers, the family is asking that donations be made to North Park Covenant Church or to Virginia M. Ohlson International Studies Endowment at the UIC College of Nursing.

Learn more about making a memorial donation to Virginia M. Ohlson International Studies Fund.

Learn more about the 2010 Virginia M. Ohlson Program:"Ganbare! Celebrating the Life and Times of Chieko Onoda" on Wednesday, April 28.