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Johanna Walsh

Johanna Walsh at Park Prewett Hospital. Photo courtesy of Geraldine Walsh

“It was hard work with long hours in Psychiatric nursing. I went into mental health nursing; I loved working with the patients. The hospital was Park Prewett Hospital in Basingstoke, Hampshire.

 

It must have been around 1955, but I can’t be exact about when I arrived in England. I came from Waterford in Southern Ireland. I was the third youngest of nine siblings.

Originally there were 13 of us but sadly the other four siblings never reached adulthood. My mother also died when I was four years old from septicemia, gained from a small cut on her finger – there was no free health care then.

We lived on a farmhouse and pretty much grew all the food we ate – this enabled us not to be so much affected by the war.

I spent some time in hospital as a child with Tuberculosis – strange to say that I enjoyed my time in hospital. There are scars at both sides of my neck from the operations to remove fluid from the infection.

 

 

Photo courtesy of Geraldine Walsh

It was common to make your own clothing or have them made for you. I knew of a wonderful dressmaker in Waterford. Adorned with pictures from magazines, I would show her what I wanted, often a cocktail borrowed from different styles – she would make them for me. One of these dresses I had at Park Prewett – many of the nurses took turns to wear it just for a photo!

This year I celebrated my 90th birthday. I was born in 1930. I enjoy the health care provided by the NHS – without it I am sure many of us would have had shorter lives and most likely less quality health.

Most of my life has been spent living in England now. However it hasn’t always been a bed of roses. There have been many challenges. I remember the days when ‘No Blacks, no Irish and no dogs’ adorned housing with rooms to let. Alongside other issues too – it was very difficult if you were an unmarried mother.

I am glad that this time has gone, but there is no freedom that can ever be taken for granted. Fortunately, there were many people here who had open hearts and minds to accommodate us. I have no regrets and have had many happy years.

Johanna Walsh at Park Prewett Hospital. Photo courtesy of Geraldine Walsh

Photo by Edward Walsh of Johanna Walsh. Photo courtesy of Geraldine Walsh.

Conversations with my mother, Johanna Walsh, on her time nursing 

– Geraldine Walsh

Jyotsana (Josh) Raval

Before the independence of India from the British Empire, Britain brought workers from India to East Africa to build the railways. That’s how my family came to be in Kenya. Political upheaval began in the late 1960s and my dad got concerned. He thought we needed to move out before there were any major issues. Because we had British passports as a result of Kenya being a former British colony, we were advised to come here. My dad came first and the rest of the family came about a year later.

Leon Hoh

I came from Pahang, Malaysia in 1975 at 22, to train in Psychiatric Nursing at Severalls Hospital, Essex. At the time, there were few job opportunities in Malaysia for Chinese immigrants like me due to the government’s discriminatory programme favouring native Malays.

Lilian Tan

I travelled from Malaysia in 1959 to train to be a nurse at Edgware General in London. I wanted to be independent. My cousin had already came over, and suggested it. I didn't realise it would be such hard work!

Jessica Anne Filoteo

When I was in my 20s, I read the book Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. She talked about her travels in Italy in such detail that by the time I finished reading it, I decided that I wanted to do the same. I wanted to travel around Europe and experience their culture, and the best way for me to do that was to work and live in the UK.
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