Ann retires after 40 years of nursing

May 25th 2001

Ann Eastwood, Clinical Nurse Specialist in Breast Care at the West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust, is to retire after forty years’ service.

Mrs Eastwood’s last day at work will be on Thursday 31st May, after which she will be taking a well-deserved rest.  She qualified as a nurse in 1961 when she joined the Altrincham Hospital in Cheshire.

I have thoroughly enjoyed my career and it will be a shame to leave all of my friends and colleagues at the West Suffolk, but after forty years work I am looking forward to spending more time with my grandchildren and starting new hobbies, said Mrs Eastwood.

She moved to Suffolk in 1979 and began working as a district nurse at the Angel Hill Surgery. Following the introduction of the National Breast Screening programme in 1989, Ann undertook the Advanced Breast Care course at the Royal Marsden Hospital. She was then appointed as a specialist nurse in the field of breast care.  Encouraging women to participate in breast screening formed a large part of her role.

Breast care nurses support and give information to patients, their families and friends, and educate individuals and groups about breast awareness, she said.  Women need to be alert to the importance of looking after their breasts, and should report any changes to their GP or practice nurse.  Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers affecting women with 12,677 people dying from the disease in Britain in 1999.  Government initiatives have meant that breast care services have grown over the last decade.  There are now four specialist breast care nurses working at the West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust.  Two surgeons concentrate on breast surgery.  A Fast Track Clinic was introduced in 1995, enabling patients to have all their tests in one visit and return within two weeks for their results.

Mrs Eastwood, who lives in Great Barton, is married with two children.  She has two grandchildren with another one on the way.  When not busy with them, she plans to learn to play the piano and take art classes during her retirement.