Hurry up Nurse: Memoirs of nurse training in the 1970s
£3.80
Leicester, 1977. Dawn Brookes was excited to trade in her job for a career. While her family worried the hard-partying girl was too immature to take it seriously, the teen eagerly launched into her training as a nurse. But nothing prepared her for the stressful chaos of working in high-stakes hospital wards.
As sickness, death, and struggle became part of her daily routine, the inexperienced woman labored to keep it all together. And each day turned into a challenge to push forward with the relentless admissions of those in need of care.
In this raw and frequently hilarious account of nursing in the 1970s, Dawn Brookes gives a brilliant insight into a beautiful and poignant world. And from changing bedpans to taking orders from razor-sharp sisters who dominated her work, she pulls back the curtain on the sweetest and ugliest sides of this often overlooked role.
Hurry Up Nurse is a touching and humorous memoir. If you like honest accounts, zany situations, and seemingly insurmountable odds, then you’ll love Dawn Brookes’s compassionate memoir.
Revised second edition.
Buy Hurry Up Nurse to don the scrubs today!
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Additional information
| Publisher | 2nd edition (13 Sept. 2021), Oakwood Publishing |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| File size | 1396 KB |
| Simultaneous device usage | Unlimited |
| Text-to-Speech | Enabled |
| Screen Reader | Supported |
| Enhanced typesetting | Enabled |
| X-Ray | Not Enabled |
| Word Wise | Enabled |
| Sticky notes | On Kindle Scribe |
| Print length | 292 pages |
| Page numbers source ISBN | 1913065359 |
by Amazon Customer
Dawn Brookes’ account of her life whilst training to be a nurse in the 1970s is full of humour and light-hearted descriptions – yet it also touches the very roots of this most caring of all professions. The sheer hard work, long hours, low pay, unpleasantness of dealing with bodily functions and strictness of senior staff, brings home to us in 2019 all that those who work for the NHS now are still doing for people greatly in need (it could be any of us). I am delighted that Dawn has gone on to have such a long and successful career, especially as – by her own admission – she was not academic during schooldays. And that the friendships she has built and the affection and gratitude of her many hundreds of patients have given her so much fulfillment. I read her book with smiles but also great appreciation of the nursing profession.
by Celia Boyd
“Carry On, Nurse”??? Absolutely not!!! Hattie Jaques and Barbara Windsor—eat your hearts out! Nursing is a vocation, requiring careful observation and important decisions. No-one could undertake that rigorous training for fun. Society has long exploited the innate natural maternal instinct of women to nurture and care for others. And nurses have not merely been the victims of this type of exploitation, but in popular masculine culture, they have been objects of inappropriate lust and innuendo. Dawn Brookes’ memoir :- “Hurry Up, Nurse” does much to question this inaccurate mythology. And it is a shameful fact that politicians have over the ages relied on the caring nature of many dedicated women (and men) to provide this exhausting essential service in our hospitals for meagre financial reward and limited national influence.
Dawn Brookes describes with insight and humour the training she underwent in the seventies. She entered the profession largely because a friend who had enjoyed her training ,had had to resign from it. One gets the impression that she saw in Dawn, a personality with stamina and compassion. It seems grossly unfair to the laywoman that the training whilst demanding considerable energy and physiological insight attracts less respect than that which doctors are awarded. Surely the two professions should be on an equal footing.
Dawn recounts her experiences with humour and compassion and “Hurry Up, Nurse” is both entertaining and informative. There are many amusing episodes but the underlying message of this memoir is the realisation that the profession of nursing is undervalued nationally, not least because of popular entertainment stereotyping. Whilst the humour is compelling and infectious, Dawn has written a serious appraisal of her own training and does not let the reader forget that the expertise and dedication of the nursing profession is the bedrock of our precious National Health Service. The selflessness of the nursing profession is why our Health Service still exists.
by Amazon Customer
A Fantastic account of a young student nurse training. Definitely recommend a read. True account of nursing in the 70’s.
by scattyann
I loved this book, l laughed and cried at Dawn’s wonderful recollections of nurse training. I commenced my own training in October 1977, I’d forgotten some of the things Dawn remembered, so almost shrieked when reminded of Kardex, metal bedpans and sluices (great for hiding in for a crafty cigarette), flower arranging and night shifts.
I was really sorry when l actually finished reading and am almost halfway through the next book. Thank you Dawn!
by val
Reading this book brought back memories of the difference a kind nurse made while in hospital. It would be good if all nursing staff read this book to help them realise that their kindness makes a huge difference to patients.
by D
Dawn Brookes writes in a way that engages the reader drawing you into her memories. Dawn reveals her genuine compassionate nature; her memories are funny, sad and poignant. I really enjoyed the book and look forward to the sequels.
by Mrs. L. J. Pullen
This is such an enjoyable read! Each chapter describes various experiences, usually on a certain ward, during the author’s SEN or RGN training.
For any nurse who trained in the late 70s or early 80s (as I did), many, many memories come flooding back! Dawn & I worked together as midwives in the late 80s and were very good friends. However I didn’t hear about all these experiences until I read this book! As Dawn points out, nurses worked very hard physically & emotionally and gave of themselves for the good of their patients. Nurse training has of course changed very much since those days. Student nurses still work hard but, unlike us, now have a mentor & are supernumerary. Having myself done a Return to Practice course in 2010 & been a patient in 2015, I cannot fault their care……but some of the banter, humour & camaraderie seems to have slipped away….. Well done Dawn for taking us back to that special time!
by Judith Ball
Fun nurse book