Maternal

Regarding the maternity ward in The News (Memories of hospitals in the city and their staff over the years, March 10). In the late ’60s I worked three nights a week as an auxiliary nurse on the maternity ward.

At Christmas the Lord Mayor visited us. Also us nurses would each buy a gift, pop them in a large bag all gift wrapped and pick one out on Christmas Day.

Once a month one of us would wear an all-white uniform and work on the special care ward upstairs.

And when New Year’s Day was coming up, a cot was dressed up especially for the first baby to be born. Needless to say, every one of the eight wards wanted to use it.

Because the trained nurses were more busy than us auxiliaries, I found time to talk and help mums to breastfeed if they wanted to. Also, if they had lots of milk, they would express it off and it would be put in special bottles and fed to premature babies.

The sister on my ward (A1) was Sister Thatcher. There were two night sisters and one would do a check around the eight wards every night. One was Miss Booth, who was then Martin when she married. One mum, a Mrs Eke, was going to name her son Lee. Us nurses said it shouldn’t be Lee Eke and I think she changed it to Brian. Lovely rewarding work and happy memories.

I am in the photograph (pictured left) in the old maternity wards that were on the left side of the gates.

I had my first baby, Kathleen, there on

December 22, 1949. We had to stay in hospital 10 days then. On Christmas Day the Lord Mayor visited and gave us a pair of baby socks. Mrs J K Taylor

Crofton Close, Purbrook