Anne and Paula celebrate four decades of nursing

Two nurses who began their training together as 18 year olds are still working together, four decades on.

Anne Pomeroy and Paula Debling trained at the Kent and Canterbury Hospital as student nurses and have worked at the site throughout their 40-year careers.

Anne is an interventional radiology theatre sister, while Paula is home dialysis manager for the renal team.

Both have seen many changes over the years – and neither is planning to hang up their uniform just yet.

Anne said: “There have been so many advances that mean we can get our patients home more quickly, which is better for their recovery.

“I remember the first endovascular aneurysm repair we did with a professor from London – now we do them all the time.

“Medicine is always developing which means there is always something new to learn. I am eternally curious and always say to people there are no stupid questions; if you don’t know something, ask or look it up!”

Paula originally wanted to work with older people but there were no vacancies so she ended up on a renal ward, and fell in love with the speciality. The team at K&C cover the whole of Kent, supporting patients to have dialysis at home and avoiding the need to come into hospital for treatment.

She said: “It is very diverse, and very rewarding, and that is why I am still here – and will be until I’m asked to leave!

“When we first started, the uniform included paper hats and cloaks and we certainly looked the part walking up from the nurses’ accommodation in Ethelbert Road.

“It is very different now, but the challenges around the demand for our services are still there, and so is the reward of being able to make a difference to patients.”

Anne’s role involves supporting patients in the operating theatre, with many people awake during their procedure.

She said: “More and more surgeries are carried out using spinal blocks or local anaesthetics now, which is another change.

“I like to reassure people and let them know I am there for them, and being able to care for them is the best part of the job.

“The technology changes and the environment evolves but the patient is always at the heart and the reason we go to work every day.”

Paula has overseen the expansion of the home treatment service, which used to involve craning cabins into people’s gardens to house the equipment.

Now the machine can be set up in a bedroom or living room, and almost 100 people across the county now manage their own treatment at home.

Other changes include a flattening of the hospital hierarchy, once ruled by strict matrons who were feared by many.

Paula said: “When you heard matron’s shoes clip-clopping down the corridor you almost stood to attention.

“They were role models – you never wanted to disappoint matron and they had very high expectations.”

Anne added: “It does feel like 40 years has gone in a flash. A lot of our former colleagues have left nursing but I still love it. Every day is different, with something new to learn but patients come first and always will.”