O'Brien

Melton Times, Friday October 7 1983, page 41.

Karen Norton talks to a woman who has dedicated her working life to nursing.

VALE NURSE PAT CALLS IT A DAY.

RETIREMENT for Harby's district nurse Miss Patricia O'Brien doesn't spell hours of relaxation. She will certainly be kept busy visiting all the families in the Vale of Belvoir who see her as a trusted friend, as well as a professional nurse. Letters wishing her well and inviting her to keep in touch have been flowing in to her Green Lane home since she retired on Friday. And as a measure of their affection for her local people have showered her with gifts and flowers.

It's not surprising that she is considered "one of the family" wherever she goes after sharing a family's happiest moments with the birth of a new member — and the saddest — the death of an elderly member. For nearly 40 years Patricia has been caring for others through her career — and about 30 of those years have been dedicated to patients in the Vale of Belvoir area. The villages she covered included Harby, Hose, Long Clawson, Nether Broughton, Old Dalby, Holwell, Ab Kettleby and Grimston.

So it is understandable that her mileage has been running into the hundreds some weeks and she has decided not to face another hazardous winter out on the roads. At 62 Patricia feels the pressure of travelling in snow and icy conditions would take their toll on her health. And she has some hair-raising tales to tell of her accidents while out dashing to a birth or an incident.

She once made local newspaper headlines when she slid on black ice — right into a stationary police car which had run into another parked car. Fortunately the police saw the funny side of the matter.

"Many a time my car has slipped off an icy road into a ditch or into a road sign when I've been in a hurry — but it's all been part of the job. Being a district nurse means you have a tremendous responsibility to the people living in your area. If they call you out in the middle of the night no matter what the weather you're expected to go, and although I've never minded I've decided to take things easier this year."

Patricia has never been injured on her long journeys — but has got through a fair number of cars! Not only does she care for the families in the Vale she has, on occasions, helped out with an emergency involving their pets. She has been called in to look at cats and dogs which have been involved in accidents when the owners saw her as someone to turn to for help. One villager described her as "a mine of information" and “someone who always knew what to do if there was a crisis."

In emergencies she has delivered calves and lambs and saved a horse from bleeding to death after an artery was severed. She has delivered 162 babies and her daily work included caring for patients after an accident or an operation.

"My job has been to get people back on their feet again so they can carry on with their daily lives," she said. "I've got a tremendous amount of satisfaction out of seeing a sick person recover and return to a normal life. To do this has meant total care. You not only have to use your medical skills to get a person well but have to take account of their state of mind as well. Recovery is much faster if a patient is in good spirits so it was my job to cheer them up as well. This is probably why you make friends for life in this profession — once you have helped someone they never forget and I am treated like one of the family when I drop in on them."

Patricia became a nurse after seeing the results of the Second World War. She was 23 when she joined Whipp's Cross Hospital at Leytonstone for a State Registration training, and spent five and-a-half years gaining qualifications.

"After seeing the ravages of the war I thought I was needed in nursing and I felt I could do the job and enjoy it. The training was really gruelling in those days when students were overloaded with work. In my time the juniors were expected to do a lot more than they are today and on my course only two of the 13 students completed their training."

She was given the opportunity to work on a maternity ward and this sparked off her interest in midwifery and she went to Cornwall in 1949 to train at Southmede Hospital. From there she moved to Worcester for more midwifery training and then to Hereford for her Queen's District Nurse training. Fully trained, she came to the Melton area to take up the position of district nurse and has never regretted the move.

"If I could live my life all over again I would do the same," she said. "I've been very happy and I've made some wonderful friends. Now I plan to spend my time keeping in touch with friends, gardening and birdwatching."

Patricia is a keen ornithologist and has travelled all over the country to nature reserves for her relaxing hobby. Knowing this, the Leicestershire Health Authority and nurses in Melton recently presented her with a pair of binoculars and a porcelain robin for her retirement. She also likes gardening and walking and her spare time, if she has any, will be taken up by these hobbies.