Nurse retiring after 53 years is so sad to leave

A PLYMOUTH nurse is retiring after 53 years in the NHS. Jo Young, aged 72, celebrated her long vocation with an emotional team at Plymouth Blood Donor Centre and described her retirement as ‘like a bereavement’

- KATIE OBORN

Jo recalls memories over the 53 years she has been working within the NHS. She has also worked as a midwife at Derriford and as a nurse at Tavistock Hospital, as well as further afield in Milton Keynes. She said the memories that stand out most are the things that have been very sad or very difficult. She remembers stressful parts of her career, such as cardiac arrests and people that either made it or didn’t. The sadest parts of her vocation are also imprinted on her memory, such as a baby brought into minor injuries, but who had already died.

Jo said that the ‘joyous occasions tend to melt into the background’.

She has received numerous thank you cards and tokens of gratitude over the years for her caring role as a nurse. Many patients over the decades have felt safe in her care. She speaks about a man with chest pain expressing not feeling fearful in Jo’s safe hands on one occasion in hospital. In maternity care Jo was told she was ‘the best midwife’ by one woman. Staff that have worked alongside Jo agree, colleagues express feeling ‘safe and supported’ with Jo on their team.