Nursing in the Family (Wife's Punishments) by George

A few more tales of the wife in her early years has a staff nurse. After finishing the night shifts duty my wife got a position working days. She didn’t settle to it, and since it was paying two-thirds of the night work we were finding it difficult to make ends meet. At that time home ownership was a relatively new thing, we’d saved the deposit but were now trying to pay the mortgage and feed ourselves at the same time.

So it was late 1968. Another night shift duty came up, a permanent one. The sister interviewing my wife said she was just what nursing needed. My wife gave her notice and a month later she started. She arrived for her first night shift and was surprised to find that the sister who interviewed her had been promoted to night matron. The sister in charge of the ward now, had been a third year student nurse at the training hospital my wife trained at, when she was a first year. This third year and my wife just seemed to rub each other up the wrong way. My wife had been on the receiving end of a few nasty jokes, and a stripping by this nurse, not sure which one of the many strippings my wife got as a student nurse.

As I said before my wife has this unintentional way of irritating people. For example, I love my garden, my wife as a little plot and part of the bench in the green house. The other day she came in as I was cutting back my tomato plants to get the second young sweet crop. “Their nice…. That branch is cut further away then the others” says my wife picking up the scissors and snipping the merriest bit of the branch off. No one else would have noticed, and if they had they wouldn’t have said anything. But it irritates people that sort of behavior. I’ve grown immune to it, NOT.

Any way the first few weeks went find. Then one night my wife was on duty with the sister. There’d just taken in a new intake of students to the ward on night shift. These would be on their second allocations in the old system of training. So they’d be one group of first years just behind them just starting ward for first time on days. So the day staff where full of telling the initiations and practical jokes that had been played. One of the night student nurses, a pleasant girl but not very organised was driving every body insane. She would just mess up in little ways and cause things to over run in time.

My wife needed something from the treatment room and saw that someone had left the light on. She began to push open the door and realised that someone was in. The door now wide open she was greeted by the sight of the student nurse being held down by two auxiliaries. They loved getting back at students. The poor girl’s tights and knickers where around her knees, the auxiliaries had their legs through her legs keeping her legs spread. Her dress was unzipped, and her bra unclipped. The dress and bra where pulled down meaning that her naked breasts would be pushed into the treatment table.

Sister had a big soapy sponge in her hand, which was between the unfortunate girls legs. This was one of the must diabolic punishments nurses give nurses. It was called various things from, sponge bath, to blanket bath, to rub down. It wasn’t an initiation it was punishment.

My wife complained and told them to release the girl, who was in tears. The sister said, she deserved it and then sponged her bare backside. That’s enough said my wife and the sister slammed the sponge into my wife’s chest soaking her apron and dress. “Here, miss goody-goody” the sister said then as she signaled to the two auxiliaries to let the third year go, “We’ll talk later”.

The poor girl released and relieve that her ordeal was over was being comforted by my wife. They became great friends and still are.

Some weeks later, the young student nurse was upset and nervous on duty. My wife asked why and the nurse said that sister had sponged her again; only this time she got the full treatment that include breast wash. My wife collared sister next time she was on duty. My wife here had a valid point. They never used punishments to correct poor nursing performance. Punishments tend to make it worse. What you need is what today is called mentoring. My wife said as much. The sister told her that she (my wife) and the student nurse could either scrub up or ship out. After another incident that’s what the young nurse did, a loss to the profession, she as just retired as a head teacher of the local independent primary school, and is tipped for some official position in education.

Any way things now between the sister and my wife were rather tort. My wife found the job stressful because of this. Then one night she was working with the student nurse, about a week or two before she left. In those days you had to wait until the end of an allocation to leave. My wife went off to get something and noticed the treatment room light had been left on. She just walked into the ambush. As she stepped through the door, the auxiliaries grabbed her. The sister was stood to the side. A third year student nurse came forward and pulled down my wife’s dress zip and unclipped her bra. My wife fought as hard as she could but auxiliaries are built big, heavy, and tuff. (Well they where in those days, apologies to any auxiliary nurses reading this). The dress was pulled down at the front revealing my wife’s breasts and she was then pushed down over the treatment table.

The 3rd year now undid my wife’s belt then pushed up her dress. She grabbed my wife’s nylons and pulled them down taking her knickers with her. The auxiliaries hooked their ankles around my wife’s ankles and pulled her legs apart.

Sister approached and said, “Well now what’s missing, oh yes” and she open the door and the third year student nurse was brought in, by two other 3rd years. She was shocked at the sight. “Staff here as decided that in future she will take all your punishments for you” with that sister took a soaking wet sponge and washed between my wife’s legs and bottom. She was very ruff. Next she took a soapy sponge and soaped between my wife’s legs and bottom. It was caustic soap so caused my wife to have irritated skin down below for a week nearly. She then told the auxiliary nurses to lift my wife up straight and turn her around. She then washed her breasts, leaving my wife all soapy. They left her and the student nurse alone. I think this with the final incident is what made the young nurse give up and become a teacher. They consoled each other and the student helped my wife clean up. She was very apologetic, since she felt guilty at my wife’s treatment.

After this relations between the sister and my wife worsened. The sister would hide things from her; forget to tell her important information about patients and a lot of other unprofessional stuff. My wife went and saw the matron who said leave it to her. She spoke with the sister and things seemed to lighten up.

One night whilst doing her rounds she noticed the bathroom light had been left on. She pushed open the door that was then pulled open out of her hand. Sister was stood there up against the wall holding a tray. My wife panicked immediately and tried to turn away but the student nurses grabbed her. They pulled her in and pushed her to the floor. They pull off my wife’s shoes and unzipped her dress and undid her belt. They then pulled the dress and apron off over her head, as another pair of hands pulled her nylons and knickers down and off. Her bra was also pulled off quiet violently causing my wife days of discomfort. Next thing now naked laying on her front, she’s turned over. Sister approaches and my wife’s sees the shaving tray. Her legs are pulled apart and sister says, “Leave or next time” and then puts the tray down and turned to leave, then having a second thought picking up my wife’s clothes. “They’ll be in the seminar room” the sister said, “Won’t betide anyone who helps her”. The students who liked my wife apologised and said that sister had said if they didn’t help they knew what would happen to them. My wife said she understood.

My wife had to leave the treatment room naked. Her choice was either to walk down a crowed ward of sleeping male patients to the linen cupboard, running the risk of patients waking up. Or going out onto the main corridor and across to the other half of the ward (female end) then down to that linen cupboard. At least female patients seeing her would be better. Or go for the seminar room that was along the main corridor and down one flight of stairs, completely naked. She decided to make for the women’s linen closet. Then from their went and recovered her uniform. She was glad she did, since wrapped in a sheet she bumped into two porters.

After this the sister changed tack. Obviously the matron had made it clear the vendetta had to stop. That’s the problem with vendettas they spin out of control. They drag others in and leave a nasty feeling on the ward. Sister would make my wife’s rota impossible. Normally on nights you work Tuesday through to Saturday of one week back to back with Sunday to Thursday of the next week. The other half of the team, work a week out of phase. This means on a surgical ward you have double staff on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday the operation day and two days after, when patients need more care. Every so many fortnights you get an extra day off by either not starting until Wednesday or finishing on Wednesday. But sister put mid week splits in, had my wife work five, and five with a break in the middle. Changed her rota around especially if we had anything planned and she found out about it.

Still my wife hung in figuring that eventually sister would get sick of it. Then sister started being especially nasty to student nurses and saying it was my wife’s fault that caused issues between her and the students. Then one night while sister was giving a student a deserved dressing down, but going right over the top my wife stopped her. Sister left the room saying nothing.

The next night my wife had just come onto ward when she was confronted by the day shift third years. I’ve said before that on occasion’s students get to get back at the people who initiated them. My wife was a third year when these where first years and she’d bathed the lot of them. They grabbed her and within seconds she was naked in the lower bathroom. She had no choice. The shaving tray was presented. She was told it was that or run back to the changing room naked for her spare clothing. My wife took to her heels. Better to have rumors about you running naked late at night through the hospital (all heard before) than surrendering to a pubic shave.

Covering has best she could she dashed down the male ward. At least two patients got to see her, out the door and down the corridor, a porter and doctor, down the stairs and the big no-no happened. Two visitors who had just come from or where going to see a dying relative saw her.

The matron, coming up the bottom corridor looked astonished and chased after my wife. Although initially very angry with my wife, once my wife had explain to matron what had been going on matron was very understanding. They managed to smooth over the incident with the visitors by my wife writing a letter of apology. She felt she didn’t need to but it was the right thing to do. The two male patients thought it was a hoot and pulled my wife’s leg for days. The sister of course hadn’t been near and denied she’d put the third years up to it. Matron knew different but couldn’t prove it, so the students and my wife each got an official warning put on their files.

Hi-jinx are find but not involving members of the public or patients.

After this every thing went quiet. My wife tried everything to make friends with the sister. We had her and her husband over for dinner. We even sent her a nice card and flowers when she announced she was pregnant.

Late one night (there was a bug going around and elective surgery had been cancelled, consequently there where no patients on my wife’s ward) the phone rang. It was the staff nurse of the next ward. She’d let the students go to the off duty room to revise or work on assignments. She needed a hand moving their only patient. My wife likewise had sent the students off, and sister had disappeared to do rounds since she was covering for matron.

My wife stepped onto the ward and saw that the bottom bed had curtains around. She walked down to it and pulled the curtains back. The sister and the two auxiliaries greeted her; she turned to run but was firmly caught. The third years from that ward gathered around. These included one that had been torture mercilessly by my wife’s cohort. Not particularly my wife. My wife found herself being hoisted off the floor and then pin down. The main ward lights now flicker on and another group of students where fighting with someone. My wife felt her zipper go, then her bra clasp. Her shoes were already off, from trying to flee. Now hands grabbed at her nylons and ripped rather than pulled them down. Soon the belt was off and the dress was being yanked up over her head. Then her underwear was ripped off. She was turned over and spread eagled.

Sister spoke, “Shave the pair of them then dump their stuff over the balcony”. My wife was now aware of the other group of students. They had the staff nurse from that ward pinned down equally naked.

A 3rd year set about each of them and within five minutes my wife was very naked indeed. They where released but their clothes where chucked out of the ward off the balcony. They had no choice. Both of them completely naked had to climb down the exterior fire escape and recover their clothes.

After this, the sister took maternity leave and thankfully never came back. My wife’s career bloomed and before long she was a sister. She remained on nights even after our first daughter was born, only giving up when it was obvious that she just couldn’t manage.

One day she’s on ward and a student nurse comes to her and says there’s a sales rep in the reception area. My wife says to get rid of him. The nurse says it’s a woman. My wife was just about to say to get rid of her then when she heard her voice.

My wife quickly called her friend Kathy who was on the next ward block over and a few other trusted colleagues. She told the student nurse to put the rep in the treatment room.

My wife walked in. “You!” said the rep. Then she noticed the group behind my wife. “No, you wouldn’t”. But they did. They stripped her of her business suit then her blouse. Still pleading she was stripped of her nylons and then her underwear. My wife presented her with a choice sponge or razor. The women said. “I’m sorry, could we forget what happened and be friends” “Sure” said my wife, “right after this”?

The woman was washed very thoroughly and then shaved. You obviously know who his woman rep is by now. What you don’t know is that she’s sitting down stair at my home right now. She and my wife became good friends. She’s the God Mother of my second daughter.

Having had her kid, my first daughters second husband. She’d decided to take part-time work as a sales rep. I’ll tell you on another occasion about some of the stories she’s told over the years.