#WeAreNorthern

Meet Kerrin Camen, Clinical Nurse Specialist, GOT. Kerrin celebrated an amazing 40 years of dedicated service at Northern Health. Today, we deep dive into her career which spans four decades.

Q: What is your coffee order?

A: I actually don’t drink coffee but l drink weak black tea and will until the cows come home! As l work in the operating theatre l don’t get much of a chance to walk down to the cafe, but if l did l would treat myself to a lovely hot chocolate.

Q: How does it feel to reach 40 years of service?

A: On one hand l feel really quite proud that l have spent 40 years in the same job but on the other hand, it’s a bit embarrassing because it means l am very boring and haven’t been very adventurous with my career. The truth is, l feel l got the right job, right from the start!

When l was offered the position in theatre not long after finishing my training, they wanted me to commit to it for around a year and then l would get back to the wards to nurse. I started a couple of weeks before l got married but now, four decades later, l am a grandmother and have just celebrated my 40^th wedding anniversary. Needless to say, l have no plans to return to the wards!

Q: Tell me about your career progression at Northern Health

A: I have worked in every area of theatre but l predominantly work as an anaesthetic nurse now and as far as career progression goes, l have never entertained any ideas of leadership or management.  I much prefer being part of the team to leading it.

Q: What changes have you seen in healthcare over four decades

A: Of course, working in the same job for 40 years, I have seen too many changes and developments to mention. Surgery and anaesthesia were comparatively simple in the early 80’s, but over time I have borne witness to significant advances in surgical techniques, anaesthesia, medications, patient monitoring, safety standards, sterilisation methods and the development of radiological assisted procedures, ultrasound imaging and proliferation of endoscopic and laparoscopic surgery. Career structuring and remuneration for the nursing profession has also been significant over this time and as for the IT perspective, I’ve seen the introduction of computers, data collection, scanning and tracking and most recently of course EMR.

From my start in a humble three theatre department at PANCH (Preston & Northcote Community Hospital) my workplace over time has become an extremely busy and dynamic 10 theatre complex here at the Northern Hospital Epping. Regardless of the changes I have described over my career, I have always ‘put myself in the patients’ shoes’ and whether they are having a brief simple procedure or life impacting surgery, I strive to make their operating theatre experience as comfortable and gentle as possible. It might be just another day for me at my work, but it’s their big day when they come to us for surgery and l try to never lose sight of this.

Q: What is something people may not know about you?

A: One thing that most of my current colleagues may not know about me is that I was part of a volunteer surgical team which travelled to the Philippines over 20 years ago now. The experience remains one of the highlights of my career and I felt very privileged to play a part in transforming the faces of 59 children and young adults who were born with and were still living with cleft lips.

We worked so hard in the six days of operating time made available to us, utilising just the one theatre but with two operating tables we undertook two procedures concurrently. The days were long, humid and tiring but the teamwork and comradery was genuine, the patients and their families were immensely grateful and the ‘Helping Children Smile’ mission was a huge success. It certainly gave me a new appreciation for my Australian workplace, privileged working conditions and it reinforced my admiration for our wonderful healthcare system.