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Irish Nurses in the NHS: An Oral History
224 pages, Paperback
Published April 4, 2025
35 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 26, 2025
A fascinating record of the stories of 45 nurses, the majority of whom are women (and two men), and their experiences working for the NHS, since its foundation in 1948. Astonishing to think the contributions of Irish nurses to the NHS over six decades, and the pattern of Irish women's chain migration to the UK hasn't been given academic attention before now. One can't help but see that their contribution as the backbone of Britain's healthcare system since the foundation of the NHS was taken for granted, alongside nurses from other countries, including Jamaica, Malaysia and the Philippines. These nurses were first person witnesses to huge changes in British society, exposed to multiculturalism, anti-Irish racism, sexism and religious conservatism. Their stories are moving, amusing and inspirational.
A thread of modesty weaves throughout and unites the narratives, while it is clear how they worked incredibly hard in challenging circumstances, while balancing family responsibilities with their careers. Pride is clear too, for the work that they all undertook in hospitals through England, Wales and Scotland, all in search of a different type of life than what was available in rural Ireland. My nana trained to be an NHS nurse in Birmingham (in the 1950s), but an encounter with an Irish man at a dance, meant she never completed her training, and had to give up that ambition for marriage and to raise children on an isolated farm in rural Roscommon. I wish I knew her story, but I felt closer to her reading these narratives.
A thread of modesty weaves throughout and unites the narratives, while it is clear how they worked incredibly hard in challenging circumstances, while balancing family responsibilities with their careers. Pride is clear too, for the work that they all undertook in hospitals through England, Wales and Scotland, all in search of a different type of life than what was available in rural Ireland. My nana trained to be an NHS nurse in Birmingham (in the 1950s), but an encounter with an Irish man at a dance, meant she never completed her training, and had to give up that ambition for marriage and to raise children on an isolated farm in rural Roscommon. I wish I knew her story, but I felt closer to her reading these narratives.
March 13, 2025
Really interesting and engagingly written
October 1, 2025
Great book and well researched. A must read for anyone interested in emigration.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews