Nursing a sense of family

JOHN HOULIHAN

Children with profound disabilities gained a home thanks to a nurse of the year, says Lynne Pearce

NURSING STANDARD

them having the burden of their care,’ she says. ‘Parents lost so much when their child was looked after in an institution. They did not help to choose their child’s clothes or even get birthday cards from them. That just did not happen in those days.’ When the home opened, parents were invited along to help their child move in. ‘They could feed them and get them ready for bed,’ says Ms Jenkinson. ‘It had not happened before because of the institutional routine. ‘The first time we sent Mother’s Day cards, we had mothers ringing in floods of tears.’ Initially the children, who were aged between 12 and 17, were completely dependent on staff.

SUMMARY

When Rosemary Jenkinson heard that she had been shortlisted for a Nursing Standard award, she was so convinced that nothing would come of it that she did not even bother to tell her manager. ‘I really did not expect to get very far,’ says Ms Jenkinson, who was nurse of the year in 1991. She was nominated by the then RCN adviser for learning disability nursing, Alan Parrish, who died earlier this year. The two had met in 1984, shortly after she qualified, and became good friends. He sent her a form to complete, telling her she had 24 hours to write 100 words about what she did. ‘He knew that if he had given me any longer, I just wouldn’t have done it,’ she recalls. Ms Jenkinson was honoured for her work establishing a residential home for children with profound sensory disabilities. Children moved out of hospital into two four-bedroom bungalows, based in the community just outside York. ‘I felt that we were giving the child back to their parents, without

Rosemary Jenkinson with her 1991 nurse of the year award (inset) and today

Rosemary Jenkinson was named nurse of the year in 1991 in recognition of her work to establish a community home for children with profound sensory disabilities. Winning the award was a confidence booster and a responsibility, she says. Author Lynne Pearce is a freelance journalist

‘One child could not hold a spoon when she joined us. She just didn’t know what her hands were for,’ says Ms Jenkinson. ‘But thanks to the skill and devotion of the staff, after a couple of years she could hold a chocolate bar in her hand.’ The home once held a summer ball, with a jazz band. ‘Everyone was in formal dress and we really went to town,’ Ms Jenkinson recalls. ‘It was about trying to integrate them into the community and do things that other young people would do.’ At the Nursing Standard awards ceremony in London, she remembers ‘everyone on their feet, clapping and cheering’, when her name was announced as the overall winner. ‘I looked up and there was a picture of me on the screen. I was propelled towards the stage and received my award from the then prime minister John Major, who was very charming. When I looked out all I could see were the candles flickering on the tables, because there I was in the spotlight.’ Ms Jenkinson stayed in North Yorkshire throughout her career, setting up a community unit in 1993, before becoming a nurse co-ordinator in 1997. She retired in 2009. ‘I loved my job and it was a privilege to do it,’ she says. ‘But work consumed me, and my family had taken second place.’ Winning nurse of the year boosted her confidence. ‘But it gives you a responsibility too. And without the team, the project would never have been a success. ‘Whenever I go to the awards now, I think about my time and what the new winner will experience. I cannot help but feel excited for them’ NS Enter Nursing Standard’s nurse awards, or nominate a colleague at www.nurseawards.co.uk The deadline for entries has been extended to January 3 2014.

december 4 :: vol 28 no 14 :: 2013 19

Nursing a sense of family.

Rosemary Jenkinson was named nurse of the year in 1991 in recognition of her work to establish a community home for children with profound sensory dis...
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