Local midwife retires after a ‘phenomenal’ career in NHS
A HULL midwife who has dedicated 42 years to the NHS has retired.
Janet Cairns, known as Jan to colleagues, transformed maternity services as the head of midwifery at Hull University Teaching Hospitals Trust.
Women across Hull and the East Riding have a lot to thank Jan for, according to fellow colleague chief nurse Beverley Geary, who said Jan’s service has driven through lasting changes in maternity services in the area.
After toying with the idea of retirement for a while, she left for the final time on Friday.
Jan said: “I just feel the time is right to step back and let someone else take over the next stage.
“I was on holiday in June, thinking how I’d be 60 in November and realising there’s a lot of things I would like to do with my life outside of work.”
Jan began her career with the NHS at the age of 18 when she got a job as a nursing auxiliary, caring for the elderly, before going on to study nursing at St James Hospital in Leeds.
She stumbled upon the career path a year after qualifying as a nurse, spotting a recruitment advert for midwives while taking a shortcut through hospital grounds.
Jan qualified as a midwife one year later and made the move to Hull in 1997, landing a job at Hedon Road Maternity Hospital.
“That first day, I couldn’t believe what I was walking into, it was like something out of Call the Midwife,” Jan recalls.
In 2003, Jan made the move to Hull Royal Infirmary and became head of
midwifery for the Hull Women and Children’s Hospital in 2011.
Jan said: “The opportunities I’ve been given at this trust have been phenomenal.
“I’ve been supported to do a Masters, put through a leadership programme and I’ve been supported through every step of my career by senior people and a very supportive executive management team.”
Although, according to the hospital, “she’s repaid that faith in her talents by establishing Hull firmly at the heart of the national transformation of maternity services”.
Jan puts her achievements down to the dedication of her team, saying: “The best part of my job, without a shadow of a doubt, is the people I work with.
“Even on very difficult days, we pull together. We might not always see eye to eye or agree on steps we are taking, but I have complete faith in their professionalism and everyone is doing what they believe is best for the development of trust services.”