Nurses trained at Timaru Hospital back for reunion
The last class of nurses to train at Timaru Hospital returned to the town on Friday to celebrate their 40-year reunion.
Following four days in Lake Tākapo/ Tekapo, which for some included walking the Mueller track, the group met in Timaru for a dinner, then a lunch and hospital tour on Saturday.
A member of the group, Michelle Manson, said of the original 25 students, 15 are still working in health care, and 16 attending the reunion.
Manson describes her time at the nursing school as a “lot of fun” and she made many memories with her social groups.
Something Manson fondly remembers from her time as a nursing student is the hassle all the nurses had to deal with when it came to their uniforms.
“I remember the uniforms being a strong part of the hierarchy,” she said.
“As students we had to wear black tights which were constantly falling down after a bit. So, when it did happen we had to hide our legs from the senior nurse. We also had to wear white belts over our white aprons and the belts were attached by velcro. We used to run around in the morning to do up our belts with safety pins or they would just come off.”
After her training, she spent three years in Timaru Hospital and went over the UK for a few years before returning to work in Timaru and starting a family. Manson said the group’s career pathways have been diverse including current and past roles in midwifery, law, Chinese acupuncture, Doctors Without Borders, rest home managers, duty nurse managers, practice nurses, charge nurse critical care, Reikei, ACC, hospice and a paediatric trauma co-ordinator in Scotland. One of the nurses also volunteered in Lebanon during the civil war (1975-1990), Manson said.
Other fond memories the group shared were Sister Briggs’ ward tidies where all the bed wheels had to be straight, lockers tidied, jugs filled and ward doors opened “not a minute early for visiting”.
There was the shock at having a male nurse in the delivery suite and eating Huntley and Palmers crackers and cheese for morning and afternoon tea which “sustained the workforce”.
Parties in the nurses home, sneaking people in and out and hiding hungover nurses from the supervisors.
Gathering at the stairs before each shift and walking to the wards together. The red cloaks they wore over their uniforms. Over ordering meals on the wards and trying not to get caught eating it in the kitchen.
Breaking the odd glass thermometer. Sterilising pans or over filling the steriliser on the gynaecological ward.
And finally, being told that their shoes were too noisy.