‘NURSING IS IN OUR BLOOD!’
SAVING LIVES IS A FAMILY AFFAIR FOR THESE WOMEN
Exhausted, hungry and aching, Eilis Armfield returns to her Adelaide home after a hectic night shift in Flinders Medical Centre’s cardiac ward.
Like always, she’s helped and cared for people at the lowest ebb of their lives. Along with a good feed, Eilis needs someone ‘in the know’ to debrief with. Luckily, that person is close at hand – her mum Sharon.
Sharon is also a nurse, and has been for 46 years!
“The only people who really understand the job are nurses, so I’m lucky to have Mum,” Eilis says. “She’s such a good nurse, so compassionate, empathetic and extremely organised.”
They aren’t the only ones keeping it in the family.
Two other mother-daughter duos work together at the Southern Adelaide Local Health Network – Sheree and Sarah Boylan, and Julie and Imogen Tomkins.
As they prepare to mark International Nurses Day on May 12, the six women are celebrating more than 122 years of nursing experience between them.
“I grew up hearing Mum’s stories and experiences, watching her have a positive impact on people’s lives in a hospital setting,” Imogen says. “She’s amazing, I wanted to be just like her.”
Sarah agrees, saying, “Mum is so passionate about nursing, it was hard not to be inspired!”
And despite it being a tough job, these nurses say they wouldn’t do anything else.
Julie, who now works in nursing management says, “The satisfaction of being able to help and care for people through their toughest times is very rewarding.
“I have been nursing a very long time but
I still learn something new every day.”
Sometimes that ‘lesson’ can even come from the daughter who has only been nursing a handful of years.
“Talking to Eilis opens my eyes to how difficult and different it is on the wards now,” Sharon says.
For all the nurses though, the basics remain the same. “You can make someone’s day by holding their hand or stopping for a chat,” Sharon adds with a warm smile. “It’s those little things your patients will never forget.”