When RPN Meryl Hall started out over 40 years ago, nursing scrubs hadn’t come along yet, and pressed white dresses were still the required workwear for women.
A lot has changed since then, says Hall, who will be retiring this week after 42 years as a nurse—over three decades of that in the Bancroft area.
“When I first graduated, which was in 1983, nurses still wore dresses, with white nylons,” says Hall, adding, “There had to be no runs in the nylons, we had to wear white shoes and nursing caps. And because my hair was so fine, it would fall out, and you’d get in trouble because your nursing cap was crooked… It’s like, ‘I just did CPR— give me a break!’ It was a different time.”
Hall says when she first moved to the area over thirty years ago she worked for the Victorian Order of Nurses (VON), the only homecare provider in the area at the time.
“And there were no 911 numbers. There were no cell phones. So when we were given a patient to go see, they’d say’ oh, you have to go see George and he lives about 10 minutes down the road, after you reach the fork, you’ll see a red barn and there might be a blue pickup truck in the yard,” she recalled with a laugh.
For the last 18 years, Hall has worked for the Family Health Team in Bancroft. She told MooseFM how fortunate she feels to have been able to care for community members, including multiple generations of families.
“I met someone the other day—she told me that I took care of her grandmother in the late ’80s. And now I care for her grandchildren at the office here with Dr. Griffin and Dr. Fransky… and realizing that I’ve been nursing long enough to care for five generations of some families, locally—that’s an honour.”
Hall says she has recently started telling people about her retirement, which isn’t always easy.
“The last week or two I’ve been telling people… and they’re crying in my arms and I’m crying back, because you do have a relationship with them. It is a professional relationship, but it’s personal, too.”
Hall’s last day of work is Friday.
While there is much she will miss, Hall is looking forward to having more creative time for things like painting and guitar playing, enjoying the outdoors, upping her pickleball game and spending more time with her children (two of whom are nurses themselves), and especially her nine grandchildren.
