Long-serving duty manager calls it a night

Jean Tabrum was born at Waikato Hospital and after working there for almost half a century she has finally retired.

Mrs Tabrum got her start as a trainee nurse as a teenager in 1954 and has worked on and off for about 46 years.

And while she is looking forward to some much-earned rest and relaxation, she said she has still got more left in the tank after retiring last week.

“It’s quite amazing the years just go by and you don’t quite realise it’s quite as long … It seems incredible.

“I still feel I could go on but you kind of have to call it a day some time.”

She is retiring as one of the Waikato District Health Board’s longest-serving duty managers, with more than 20 years in the role where she had overall responsibility for the campus out-of-hours, dealing with everything from emergency patients to staff incidents, security issues and site emergencies.

“It’s been an exciting, stimulating, really interesting job. No two days are the same.

“It’s probably what kept me going. Maybe I thrived on stress. Maybe it just suited me,” she said.

But despite the high-pressure nature of the job she has mostly fond memories of her time at the hospital.

“I’ve enjoyed practically every moment I’ve been here,” she said.

“I’ve fully enjoyed the last 20 years in the duty manager role.”

Mrs Tabrum said she has seen many changes at the hospital throughout the years.

When she started the campus was much smaller, and nurses lived in shared accommodation on the hospital campus. There were strict rules and curfews and the dress code was very formal.

“We wore starched white uniforms with belts and hats … The uniform had to be a certain length, so many inches above the ankle or below the knee.”

Health Waikato chief operating officer Jan Adams said Mrs Tabrum would be greatly missed and was known for her calmness, compassion and ability to multi-task.

“It was always good to know that Jean was on duty because you knew that the hospital was in safe hands,” Ms Adams said.

With six grandchildren and children overseas Mrs Tabrum has plans to travel with her husband and to spend time with family.

She said she would deeply miss her time at the hospital and was already considering volunteer work in the health sector.

“I need to be doing something. I’m not one to sit back and do nothing,” she said.