St Johns Wood business and care manager Sue Macfarlane pins a commerorative pin onto the shirt of former RNZ registered nurse Zona Neumann. Photo / Rachel Canning
St Johns Wood business and care manager Sue Macfarlane pins a commerorative pin onto the shirt of former RNZ registered nurse Zona Neumann. Photo / Rachel Canning
Fittingly, in the midst of a worldwide pandemic, last year was the International Year of the Nurse.
This week two Royal New Zealand (RNZ) qualified nurses who nursed through the polio pandemic of the 1940s and another who nursed throughout the 50,s 60s and 70s, were honoured at Oceania Healthcare's St Johns Wood Rest Home and Village, Taupō. They are Royal New Zealand registered nurses Zona Neumann, 94, Trish Isaacs, 86, and Karitane nurse Helen Gillespie, 93.
Oceania Healthcare general manager of nursing and clinical strategy Dr Frances Hughes said the recipients, all retired nurses living in Oceania Healthcare facilities, have made an immeasurable contribution to modern nursing.
Trish trained from 1953 to 1956 at Wellington Hospital and said her nursing years were the best of times.
"Nursing made me come alive. I made friends, died with every death and lived with everyone that pulled through," said Trish.
Life on the wards was hard and socialising with friends from school was impossible as the nurses' schedule meant they were available at times out of sync with the outside world. Both Zona and Trish say living in the nursing home was a brilliant way to work through any issues and upsets.
2020 was International Year of the Nurse. Zona Neumann (left) and Trish Isaccs received pins from Oceania Healthcare. Photo / Rachel Canning
"After your shift a girl would jazz up the piano and we would all come together and talk about the shift. All the worries of the day would melt over a cup of tea and some music," said Trish.
In those days, hospitals were arranged in long corridors with eight patients lined up in a row. Beds were made with sheets perfectly arranged into hospital corners and long corridors were polished and slippery. Matron was universally revered.
"Used tea leaves would be laid down under beds to prevent dust from rising, and we would carry a burning pan full of eucalyptus leaves to disperse odour in the wards from bedpans," said Zona.
After leaving school Zona worked at Feilding Community Centre for three years, and in 1946 began her nursing training at Palmerston North Hospital. As a young woman she found the first few years of training somewhat confronting, but says her early years as a general nurse were exciting times.
Tauranga Hospital equipment officer Joan Taylor lies inside an iron lung machine in the basement of the hospital, which was used in the 1950s for polio patients. Photo / Mark McKeown
St Johns Wood business and care manager Sue Macfarlane said nursing through epidemics and pandemics was something nurses have done through the ages, with Trish and Zona having nursed through the polio epidemic of 1947 to 1949 where up to 70 people died.
Zona recalls the polio epidemic as "awful days" and says Palmerston North Hospital only had one iron lung.
Zona said the iron lung, a metal coffin type structure for assisted breathing for polio patients, made a horrible noise.
"I would go off-duty and it would be going. I knew when I came back on duty if there was no loud noise, then the patient had died."
Polio patients at Hastings Memorial Hospital being given physiotherapy in 1953. Photo / File
Zona also trained as a maternity nurse and has fond memories of her time at the Feilding Maternity Hospital.
"There was a room at the back for nurses to sleep during night duty. I remember running down the corridor one time in my shorty pyjamas to the delivery room. The doctor attended but didn't comment on my attire. After the baby was born I looked at the mother and she said 'What are you doing here?' It was a friend from school on her fourth baby," said Zona.
Getting married required general nurses to retire as in the 1950s a home was a woman's career. However, both Zona and Trish returned to their nursing careers once their children were older. Zona as a district nurse in a rural area covering the Rangitīkei and Manawatū, and Trish as a Family Planning nurse.
Sue said nurses of all ages have every right to be very proud of their efforts over the years and says the coronavirus has been a wake up for the whole world about the important role nurses play in society.
Caused by a virus, polio is an incurable disease with most people showing no symptoms, and 2 per cent suffering permanently paralysed arms or legs, or having life long breathing difficulties. Polio is spread in faeces and in saliva and can also be passed on through contaminated water, milk and food.
The polio epidemic spread throughout the North Island during the summer of 1947 and peaked in 1949. Mainly afflicting children, schools were closed and there was a ban on children staying in motor camps, going to Sunday school, or travelling between the North and South Islands.
Infected children were taken to hospital and not allowed any visitors and had to recover without any support from their family. Other children (under 16 years of age) in the household had to quarantine at home for 14 days if their brother or sister tested positive to polio. Other close contacts who were aged over 16 years also had to quarantine at home for 14 days if their worked with children or food.
