A nurse who has worked for the NHS since 1972 retired from EMAS today to travel the world and spend more time nurturing plants on her allotment.
Jean Pasricha, 61, from Edwalton, joined EMAS as a triage nurse 13 years ago and has spent her time here providing medical advice to patients who have called 999 and providing support to our emergency call handlers.
Today, she was presented with two long-service awards and a bouquet of flowers, and her colleagues threw her a party at our headquarters in Nottingham.
In her retirement, Jean has plans to travel to Mexico, India and Sicily, she hopes to plant up her allotment with onions, cabbages and garlic, and wants to spend more time with her dogs – Sasha and Polly.
Jean said: “I’ve got mixed feelings about retiring – I’ve reached the stage where I am ready to leave, but I have really enjoyed it.
“The NHS has changed a lot since I joined in 1972, and people often want a quick cure, but sometimes you need to let the illness run its course.
“Every day is different, and every patient is different, but in this job you just try to do the best you can for the patient.”
Jean explained that she always wanted to be a nurse when she was growing up and so at the tender age of 16 she joined the NHS in Burnley as a cadet nurse. When she turned 18, she began her nursing training and qualified in 1977.
After a brief period as a midwife, Jean became a staff nurse again and met her late husband Ajeet, who was a doctor at the same hospital. The couple moved around with Ajeet’s job and they eventually settled in Nottingham and brought up their four children.
Jean spent 10 years as a practice nurse at a GP surgery and with NEMS out of hours, before moving to work as a triage nurse in the EMAS Emergency Operations Centre in 2004.
Sue Jevons, Clinical Service Delivery Manager of the Emergency Operations Centre, said that it had been a pleasure working with Jean and that she will be sorely missed.
She said: “Jean is a star. You can ask her anything, and if she doesn’t know the answer then she will find out.”
Although she has retired from her permanent role, Jean plans to continue doing a few bank shifts as a triage nurse when she can.