Two Hospice at Home West Cumbria nurses have retired from the home nursing team, after giving over forty years of devoted service to the organisation.

Lilian Simmonds, senior hospice nurse for HHWC, paid tribute to Gill Aitcheson and Carol Williamson, thanking them for their devoted and compassionate care to so many patients, their years of dedicated service and wished them both a long, happy and well-deserved retirement.

Gill Aitcheson began her nursing career at the Great Ormond Children’s hospital in London, where she trained as a registered general nurse as well as a registered sick children’s nurse. She spent the following decade working as a staff nurse, had international nursing experience, worked at Pontin’s Holiday Camp and nine months of midwifery training in Cambridge. Then she moved to Cumbria and worked as a sister on a surgical ward in Kendal, nurse manager at the Nuffield Hospital in Lancaster, a post in Cockermouth and a sister’s post at Mary Hewetson Hospital in Keswick.

After marriage and the birth of her two daughters, Gill worked as a staff nurse in Keswick, Workington, and Whitehaven and in 1997 she joined HHWC as a bank nurse.

In 2000, Gill started work with the palliative care night nursing service where she became team lead. Gill retired from the NHS in 2011 and took up a contracted position with HHWC until 2017 when she gave up her contract to work on the bank.

Gill said of her work at HHWC: “I really love my job. Having the time to care is one of the key elements, also fulfilment, satisfaction and being able to help our patients and families at such an intensely emotional and personal time. I have been a nurse for almost fifty years and can honestly say that working for HHWC for 21 years has been one of the highlights of my career. HHWC is such a wonderful organisation that Cumbria is very fortunate to have.”

Carol Williamson undertook state enrolled nurse training and then full registration in 1989. Her nursing career has included working on the intensive therapy unit, surgical and gynaecology wards, the community and Haverigg Prison.

Carol joined the bank of HHWC in 1994 and continued off and on until she retired from the NHS in 2009 and took up a contracted position as an RGN with HHWC. In 2016, Carol made the decision to ease her way to retirement and has worked for the past three years as a contracted HCA.

Over the past year, Carol has found inspiration from the work HHWC has done with the Wordsworth Trust and has written a poem about her work as a hospice nurse, which can be seen below.

In her retirement she is looking forward to enjoying her hobbies which include travel, hillwalking, theatre-going and swimming.

A Passing Moment

“Carol!

What do hospice nurses do?”

‘Um! Ah! My friend,

Well, we laugh

We cry

We give a helping hand

We softly whisper words of comfort and hope

And sometimes with a heavy heart and yet

Sometimes with the blessing of a lightness.’

Ah -I see the look - does he understand?

‘We see pain and sadness

Where others don’t.

We see humour and compassion

And we give kindness to all.

Our instincts are sharp you know

And we think a lot

Yes we think a lot

Have I done enough?

Have I talked too much?

Should I stay longer?

Have I said the right things?

We can be a little unsure at times

But isn’t that human?

We swear, under our breath of course

And yes we get angry

It’s not fair

But then a blessing.’

Ah, I see the look has changed

“I understand.”

A gentle touch to my shoulder

A whisper that says

“You do a good job.”

I smile,

‘Ah, no my friend, it’s not a job

But a privilege

Given to but a few.’