Farewelling Awatere parish nurse role

For more than a decade Rachael Westenra has walked alongside Awatere Valley residents, from deciphering their medical letters to delivering their groceries, and even bathing their feet.

But the Awatere parish nurse is now passing over the reins of the job she helped to design and build, as she has grandchild number five on the way.

She was employed part-time to support the community by Awatere Christian Joint Venture, the combined Anglican and Presbyterian churches, in January 2013 – just six months before the 6.5-magnitude Seddon earthquake, one of her most difficult periods, along with Covid.

“The elderly took Covid on the chin, but the quake was more traumatic,” Westenra said. “They were overwhelmed by the mess when houses were damaged, the difficulty of dealing with EQC and insurance companies, and the fear of more quakes.”

She helped put people in touch with the right people and provided reassurance.

During Covid lockdown, Westenra ran health checks by phone and delivered groceries. Once vaccines were available, she drove patients to vaccination centres and helped public health nurses gain access to homes.

The part-time job was not always parttime, Westenra said. Often as she sat down at the end of a long day, the phone would ring with another patient looking for advice. She couldn’t have done the job without the support of her husband Warren, she said.

She found that there were many people living rurally, from Molesworth Station to the sea, and from Seddon to Kēkerengū, and particularly the over-65s, who were isolated and unsupported.

So eight years ago she had the idea of holding a monthly foot spa clinic for seniors, which doubled as a healthcare and social get-together.

It was an opportunity to listen to people’s worries and put them in touch with the right person or service to help, Westenra said. With the prevalence of health issues like diabetes and heart disease, the treatment could also be life-saving.

“We recently lifted the foot of a diabetic man with neuropathy and discovered a hole underneath that he knew nothing about. We contacted his GP, who did an urgent consultation. By that night, he was in the vascular ward.

“If he hadn’t come to the clinic that day, he would almost definitely have lost that foot," Westenra said. The clinic’s establishment was one of her proudest achievements in the role, she said.

As a Christian nurse, Westenra offered emotional, psychological and spiritual support along with physical care. She would sometimes join a patient in prayer or sit beside them in their garden, enjoying its beauty.

“Understanding that we all have a need for inner peace in our lives and recognising what that is for my elderly patients is a vital aspect of my care.”

Advocacy was also important, as some elderly people did not reach out, and became insular.

“It’s often the small things that make a difference – helping decipher a medical letter, or to fill out a form.”

She also accompanied people at medical appointments, making sure they understood diagnoses and treatment, then followed up with any concerns. She also did straightforward tasks under GP direction, such as dressing skin tears, removing sutures, giving B12 injections and monitoring blood pressure. This often saved patients a drive into Blenheim.

When she saw a need, she could arrange practical support from the Seddon Lions Club such as delivering firewood.

The Awatere was a community that cared, and Westenra said she was often asked how a neighbour was doing. But confidentiality was paramount, she said.

Deflecting such queries would be one of many challenges for her replacement, Ruth Cameron, a registered nurse from the Seddon rural area.

Westenra would work alongside Cameron through December, before moving to a part-time surgical nursing role at Churchill Hospital in Blenheim.

Westenra said she was relieved Awatere Combined Churches had replaced her as few parishes now supported a parish nurse. The Faith Community Nurse Association was recently disbanded due to lack of members and financial constraints.

“It would be a disaster if the Awatere role could not continue.”

Rachael Westenra provides professional and pastoral care, in her role as Awatere parish nurse. She is stepping down to spend more time with family. ANTHONY PHELPS/STUFF