Mary Hannah Frances Ivens CBE FRCOG (1870 – 6 February 1944) was an obstetrician and gynaecologist who was the first woman appointed to a hospital consultant post in Liverpool.

[4] In December 1914, she volunteered to serve in France as head of the unit of the Scottish Women's Hospital, which was established in the Abbaye de Royaumont under the French Red Cross.

[2] Nor had she any experience of treating battle casualties, and read widely on the subject, as shown by the books which she later donated to the Liverpool Medical Institution.

She continued as médecin chef until February, 1919, with only one period of leave in England, which she spent largely in lecturing to raise money for the hospital.

[6] The Royaumont doctors pioneered a new approach to the treatment of gas gangrene, using X-rays and bacteriology for diagnosis, followed by extensive surgical debridement of the affected tissue.

[2] The hospital was inspected and approved by many French generals and government officials, and its reputation was largely due to the leadership of Frances Ivens.

[3] She also played a leading role in the activities of the Royaumont and Villers Cotterêts Association and was chairman of the Cornwall committee of the Friends of the Fighting French.

[11] In December 1918 she received the Croix de Guerre with palm, the citation reading: "...having ensured, day and night, the treatment of French and Allied wounded during repeated bombardment at Villers Cotterets in May 1918.

On the approach of the enemy she withdrew her unit at the last moment to the Abbaye de Royaumont where she continued her humane mission with the most absolute devotion”.

The University of Liverpool awarded her the honorary degree of Master of Surgery (ChM) in 1926 and in the same year she became a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE).