A shock as a new nurse.

 So much talk again about the triple jab to avoid measles reminds me of when I was a student nurse back in time, 1961 to 1964.. There were a lot of children admitted to the hospital, where I was, with the affects of measles and sadly some die  I trained to be a Qualified Nurse in a hospital, unlike today when young people get a University degree then go into a hospital. 

Different training than today's nurse. I did 3 months Pre-Training School (PTS) where we had lectures on human biology, various nursing procedures and general nursing. I can remember the cleaning staff were our patients! Each year we had a 6 week block of lectures and at the end of each one, we had written and practical tests.  

We went onto the wards for just half days at first, before we were allotted to our first ward. Mine was the Eye Ward, and Sister Watkin was in charge, I remember her well. She was lovely and patient with the patients and with us nurses especially me, new, just 18 and very nervous. A nurse was put in charge of me and on that first time. I knew I wouldn't be asked to do much more than helping to wash patients, serve meals and generally be useful, but I was still nervous!

We learnt on the job, different tasks had to be completed and we had a work book where the tasks were listed and when we had completed each one, it was signed off by a senior nurse. I remember the first time I had to remove stitches, the woman was more nervous then me and kept up a nervous chatter, I passed and my task signed off. 

That first week was so tiring, my legs ached, my feet ached and so did my head with all the things to remember. But I enjoyed it.. and I remember in that first week I did something I had never done before and although we'd been told about it, it was still a bit of a shock. My Senior Nurse and I were sent off into the male ward, to make them comfortable which included treating the older men who were bedridden. It meant soaping their buttocks, rubbing them to get the blood to circulate to prevent bed sores, then they were dried and powdered.. I was allowed to powder this old man's bum! I hadn't grown up with a man in our home, my grandfather had died when I was 7, so it was a surprise! And that was my very first introduction to nursing care of a patient! Honestly I had never seen a man naked before.

I loved that ward, perhaps because it was my first, I soon learnt to be more efficient and very gentle. In those months on that ward, I gave my first injection, as well as feeding blind patients and washing them and I washed a powered too many bums to remember! 

Being a patient myself in these last 9 years since breaking my arm with four hospital stays, I've had some lovely nurses look after me, and I've tried not to give a short intake of breath when they've stuck needles in me, grateful that the first time I did it, he had double pads on his eyes so couldn't see me shaking as I approached his bed. He said.. thank you nurse, so it must have been ok!

This picture could have been us.. Nurses today do a lot more procedures than we did, and are trained to a higher level. But what we learnt still needed brains, we weren't just carers. Two girls failed at the end of PTS and left,  and I remember most of the human biology I learnt all that time ago. I'm still in touch with three of the 'girls' I trained with. They were very happy years and I loved them.

Chrisxx