Originally posted by Ron Easthope in 2016
On 15th June 1914 Barbara commenced training as a nurse at Wellington Hospital.1
Wellington Hospital as it was in Barbara’s time there. Nurses’ Home at rear on left
She was 23 years old. In those days the minimum age for entry to nursing training was 21 years, and for Barbara’s cohort of probationers, the median age at entry was 26 years.2
She passed the ‘3 months’ examination and the junior anatomy and physiology examination in November 1914.3
Her training was interrupted in April 1915 because of illness. She had contracted typhoid fever though initially she was thought to have appendicitis and was operated on. It seems likely that she had inflamed bowel and the surgical wound was left open.4 After a prolonged period of hospital treatment she returned home in early August.5 It was the family’s belief that she had been sent home to die,6 but in fact she recovered well and by December 1915 she was back at the hospital to continue her studies.7
Barbara passed the examination for senior anatomy and physiology in May 1916, the senior progress exam. in November 1917 and the ‘Theory and Practice of Invalid Cooking’ in April 1918. She passed the Hospital Final examination in June 1918 and the State Final examination in July 1918 with marks greater than 75%.8
Records of the wards in which she gained experience as a student nurse are available from June 1917.9 These included medical and surgical wards, the Fever Ward, The Victoria medical and surgical wards and one month in the operating theatre.
Graduation photo July 1918 – Barbara (R)-hand end 2nd row
After becoming a registered nurse in July 1918, she was for three months Staff Nurse in charge of the newly opened Eye Ward. However, the country was rocked by the major influenza epidemic in late 1918 and for most of December Barbara worked in one of the designated influenza wards.
In March 1919, she was promoted to Sister10 and was in charge of the Eye Ward and Eye Theatre for the remainder of her time at the hospital. She resigned from the hospital staff in September 1920.11 It is noteworthy that throughout her training, World War One had been in progress and this impacted the hospital. The recently opened Victoria Hospital for Incurables was assigned to the Defence Department for use as two military wards. Any surgery required for the servicemen was done in the Children’s Hospital theatre. There were staff shortages with a number of medical, nursing and other staff serving overseas. A total of 59 nurses from the Wellington Hospital staff served with the NZ Army Nursing Service, and of these 15 were Sisters. Barbara’s offer to join those overseas was declined – by the time she had graduated nursing shortages at the hospital were severe and none of her contemporaries joined the NZANS. However Barbara did nurse sick and injured servicemen at Wellington Hospital.
Off duty, on steps leading to the Nurses’ Home
