Both Sides of the Sheets

Annie Armitage

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Why I wrote this book

I undertook nurse training in the 1960’s and was totally committed to the structure and discipline of nursing that had been formulated from the experiences of such people as Florence Nightingale, Mary Seacol and the horrors of two World Wars. I worked hard and was proud to wear the uniform of a State Registered Nurse and be part of a noble profession.

I believed then and I do now, that care and empathy is not just preferable but essential in achieving recovery or at least the best outcome possible. Medical intervention without these ingredients is likely to end in failure or at the least as a very unpleasant experience. No body wants to suffer or receive attention that is uncaring and ineffective but the concentration on modern techniques and technological advancement has relegated social and behavioural skills to the back seat. They have ‘thrown the baby out with the bath water’! Nurses deal with people not just parts of the body! The book started as a series of notes to help me come to an understanding and acceptance of my state of disability. I used these notes to focus my attentions on the areas of improvement that I could achieve and to a great degree I succeeded.

Examining my efforts I realised that I could possibly help various categories of people by relating my tale. Firstly I wanted to show my nursing colleagues that displaying care and empathy was still extremely important. Secondly I wanted to show those people suffering disability that they were not on their own, their feelings were not unusual, and that they could recover, maybe not totally but achieve a worthwhile life. Thirdly I wanted to help the partners/long term carers of people struck down with disabilities so that they could understand and overcome some of the difficulties that they might experience. Fourthly I wanted the NHS to recognise that structure and discipline underpinned by caring and empathy was as important today as it was during its foundation by Bevan in 1948.

I don’t know if it is different, I have just written my experiences both good and bad and tried to interlace it with some humour that has occurred on the way. A little laughter can be the best medicine. In addition to the categories of people mentioned above I believe that it will be useful for everyone. All of us are likely at some stage or another to have experiences with ill health either with ourselves or loved ones and need help from the NHS and nursing. If this book helps this understanding and furthers the quality of my profession I will have satisfactorily completed the task that I set myself.

Synopsis

Annie Armitage was a successful career nurse, with a dedication to quality nursing and care as taught during her rigorous training in the 1960s. Taking her skills, Annie eventually worked as a consultant to the Department of Health, advising on the quality of nursing care in the NHS. However Annie had been diagnosed with Lupus, an illness that effects over 50 000 people in the UK; is more common than Leukemia, yet is virtually unheard of by the wider population. Lupus usually causes great pain, serious organ damage and is potentially fatal. At 26, Annie was given 5 years to live, she fought to look after her two young children while dealing with the insidious illness. As Annie became increasingly ill, she was able to reflect on her changed situation as a patient not a nurse. During the time she was in hospital under treatment she started to wonder how the standard of nursing had slipped so drastically since her own training. Her experiences as a Lupus sufferer, and previously as a nurse, have given her first-hand experience of the quality of care experienced in NHS hospitals. Annie's observations and knowledge make this essential reading, not just for those suffering from Lupus, but also for anyone concerned about standards of nursing and care in hospitals, as well as those experiencing long-term incurable illness

Reviews

Professor Andrew Street – Director, Health Policy Team,
Centre for Health Economics, University of York

In her account of the National Health Service from her perspective first as a nurse and then as a patient suffering from Lupus, Annie is quick to praise those who have supported her through her career and illnesses but not above criticising those in her profession who prioritise paperwork and procedures ahead of patients themselves. A compelling read for those who work in the health service and for all of us who, at some point or another, and to a greater or lesser extent, will receive the care and support of NHS staff.

Anne Foster – Secondary School Teacher - Head of sixth form

For me the book works on several levels, it is a triumph of hope over adversity, a proper life story that had me laughing and nearly in tears in places. There are lots of things I could identify with, some of which are too personal to write down, and it brought back many memories of my teenage years and early adult life. I’m sure other people will identify in a similar way. On a second level it clearly shows how different are the experiences of hospital as seen from the nurse’s and patient’s perspectives. On another level it would be intriguing to investigate how far the observations regarding declining standards of nursing care are reflected else where, for instance in education. Discipline has become a dirty word, in schools we seldom use it, we talk about behaviour and learning skills, where it is suspected that what is meant is the ability to take discipline from others and to apply self discipline.
A good read, it has left me thinking.

Anne Elphick – Retired Head Mistress

This is the lively autobiography of a woman who underwent rigorous training in the 1960’s.
Later she developed an illness which has required numerous stays in hospital as a patient.
She relates her life history: employment, nursing career development, marriage and children: but she also gives account of her subjective experience of being a hospital patient in the late 90’s to 2009.
From her bed she observes lamentable ward discipline and staff comportment. In particular she finds that standards of patient care have degenerated. She gives examples of best practice.
She does however, encounter a perhaps surprising pool of the highest standards.
What is interesting about her writing is that although the story is presented logically, there is always a sort of blanket of context wrapping it around. She sees life’s many dimensions.

This book will be of general interest, as well as of special interest to student nurses and Health Service administrators. It is a good read.

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