QVH celebrates the team behind Sir Archibald McIndoe’s pioneering legacy

The pioneering work of Sir Archibald McIndoe and the team at our hospital was celebrated at a special event at East Grinstead Museum, attended by QVH colleagues, members of the McIndoe family and relatives of members of the Guinea Pig Club.

The event marked the unveiling of a collection of medals awarded to Sir Archibald during his distinguished career, which are now on long-term loan to the museum.

During the Second World War, McIndoe and his team at QVH pioneered new approaches to reconstructive surgery and rehabilitation for badly burned and injured RAF and Allied aircrew. Their work helped patients not only recover physically but rebuild their lives, with some going on to form the famous Guinea Pig Club in 1941.

Two of McIndoe’s grandsons attended the event and spoke about the medals “coming home” to East Grinstead. They reflected that, although the medals were awarded to McIndoe, they also represent the contribution of the whole team who worked alongside him at QVH.

Tamara Everington, Managing Director and Chief Medical Officer at Queen Victoria Hospital, who attended the event on behalf of our hospital , said:

“We are immensely proud of Sir Archibald McIndoe’s place in QVH’s history, but what was particularly special about this occasion was the recognition of the team of people who worked alongside him.

“Their pioneering approach was about so much more than surgery. It was about seeing the whole person and helping people rebuild their lives. That spirit of innovation, compassion and teamwork remains an important part of who we are at QVH today.

“It was a privilege to join members of the McIndoe and Guinea Pig Club families to celebrate that shared history and to see the medals come home to East Grinstead.”

The collection has been loaned to East Grinstead Museum by McIndoe’s grandson, Nicholas McIndoe Walters, on behalf of the McIndoe family. He has researched the history behind each medal, with their stories reflected in the museum’s new display.

East Grinstead Museum Chair Andy Bliss said the museum was proud to display the medals, which “honour a great man and a great team who enabled these heroes to lead fulfilling and productive lives.”

For QVH, the occasion was an opportunity not only to celebrate an extraordinary chapter in the hospital’s history, but also to recognise the people and values behind it and the legacy they have left for generations of QVH staff and patients.