Ranks
Initially there were only two ranks: Nursing Sister and Head Sister. In 1911 the intermediate rank of Superintending Sister was introduced. There was no overall head of the service until the introduction of the rank of Head Sister-in-Chief on 1 August 1927. By 1937 Head Sister and Head Sister-in-Chief had been renamed Matron and Matron-in-Chief.
The ranking system changed during the Second World War.
| QARNNS rank | Equivalent RN rank |
| Nursing Sister | Lieutenant |
| Senior Nursing Sister | Lieutenant |
| Superintending Sister | Lieutenant-Commander |
| Matron | Lieutenant-Commander/Commander |
| Principal Matron | Commander/Captain |
| Matron-in-Chief | Commodore |
Ratings, known as Naval Nurses, were introduced in 1960, with the integration of the WRNS nurses. Their ranking system was similar to that of Royal Navy ratings.
In 1982, in preparation for the introduction of male officers, the Nursing Officers' ranking system was changed.
| QARNNS rank | Equivalent RN rank |
| Nursing Officer | Sub-Lieutenant |
| Senior Nursing Officer | Lieutenant |
| Superintending Nursing Officer | Lieutenant-Commander |
| Chief Nursing Officer | Commander |
| Principal Nursing Officer | Captain |
| Matron-in-Chief | Commodore |
In 1995 the QARNNS adopted Royal Navy ranks, although the head of the Nursing Service was no longer a one-star equivalent, the senior Captain of the QARNNS was appointed Director Naval Nursing Service (DNNS) and styled with the historic post of Matron-in-Chief.
Read more about this topic: Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service
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