Heartbeat: Fond farewell for forty years’ service
November 16, 2018
Colleagues from across the Trust came together earlier this month to bid a fond farewell to a much loved colleague who was retiring after having devoted over 40 years of service to the NHS.
Hansaben Patel, known fondly as Hansa to colleagues started her NHS career as a nursing cadet at the age of 16 in 1974 with her first job basing her at the old District Hospital in West Bromwich. Within months, Hansa had found her calling and wanted to move in to nursing as her career, she found herself applying for a nursing auxillary role.
Remembering her early career, Hansa shared with Heartbeat a conversation she had with a matron when she first started nursing, “When I started my first nurse job, the matron at that time said I’ll give you six months, that stuck with me and I was determined to prove her wrong”. Forty years later, it’s clear that Hansa’s determination was unrelenting.
In the years following, Hansa has established herself on Lyndon 4 as a HCA who is caring and compassionate, putting the patient first and doing so with a smile on her face.
Speaking of her time at the Trust of which the last stint was 19 years, Hansa said, “I’ve enjoyed every minute of my career, every part and every person. There has not been a day when I’ve not woken up and looked forward to coming in to work.”
Speaking to Hansa it’s clear she sees caring as a vocation rather than occupation as alongside her role at the Trust where she is a HCA, she also spends every free day working at a local nursing home caring for elderly residents.
Looking forward to her retirement, Hansa has big plans, “We have a family home in India which we visit every year, but now I will get to spend much more time there. I’ll also be travelling to Dubai for New Years as a retirement present and we have a Mediterranean cruise planned. Best of all, I get to spend more time with my four grandchildren.”
On her retirement, Hansa had one parting message for her colleagues, “It’s been a privilege to work for the NHS and I wish everyone in my team the best for the future. “