Page 41 - QARANC Vol 16 No 2 2018

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THE GAZETTE QARANC 39
National Nursin
On Monday 4 June 2018, we found ourselves, two student nurses of the QARANC and QARNNS (Queen Alexandra’s Royal Naval Nursing Service) attending a prestigious event held at The National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, to witness the unveiling of the new memorial to commemorate the nurses and Voluntary Aid Detachment members (VADs) whose lives were lost in both the First and Second World Wars.
This event was attended by HRH Countess of Wessex GCVO, Lord and Lady Fellowes, various VIPs, and serving and veteran military nurses. The memorial includes the names of nearly 1300 nurses who lost their lives during or as a direct result of their war service. The names include members of the VADs who were founded with the help of the British Red Cross and the Order of St Johns in 1909, with the aim of providing aid, both at home and abroad, to the military forces. Many of the VAD nurses had very minimal training and experience in healthcare prior to deploying to areas of conflict.
The service was held at the new memorial site, located within the Army Medical Services memorial ground, next to the river. Readings and prayers were provided by the VIPs, VADs and the padre who took the service. The readings included a nurse’s personal letter home from the front line which had been smuggled out in an injured soldier’s plaster cast. This letter gave an insight to the harsh conditions on the front line that the nurses were exposed to.
After the memorial had been blessed by the padre, the VIPs and guests moved to the marquee located within
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Private Winpenny and Naval Nurse Cliff standing beside the memorial
the grounds of the NMA to enjoy champagne and sandwiches. Private Winpenny was selected to be amongst the QARANC representatives for the guard of honour to welcome HRH Countess of Wessex to the marquee for refreshments.
As the most junior members of both QARANC and QARNNS present, we were given the opportunity to sit on the top table with the Countess, amongst other VIPs including the Chairman of the Royal College of Nursing. This opportunity did not last long however, as we were in fact VIP seat fillers, and were shortly demoted to another table where we were able to enjoy lunch with fellow QARANC colleagues. This lunch allowed us the perfect opportunity to gain knowledge and a wider understanding from senior colleagues about our future job roles once we qualify as Registered Nurses from
Birmingham City University in 2019. Once refreshments were finished and Her Royal Highness had left the event, we took the opportunity to walk around The National Memorial Arboretum to find both the QARANC and QARNNS memorials, as well as others including the Armed Forces Memorial which we found to be a very
humbling experience.
We both feel very honoured to be
given the chance to represent the military student nurses at such an important historical event. We highly recommend a visit to the National Memorial Arboretum to reflect and to witness the many military memorials within the beautiful grounds.
Private Winpenny and Naval Nurse Cliff
Defence School of Healthcare Education
Service nursing representatives at the unveiling of the National Nursing Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum