Retired nurse Margaret, rehabs in hospital she worked in more than 70 years ago

Recovering from a fall at Tonbridge Community Hospital felt more like a busman’s holiday than hospital stay for former nurse Margaret Markides who worked there in the 1950s.

Margaret, who is 92 years-old and lives in Tonbridge, was very happy nursing at the cottage hospital and ‘could have worked 24 hours-a-day’, but does remember rules being much stricter in those days. She said: “Patients weren’t allowed to get up in the morning until a set time and visiting was very restricted.

“Matron ruled the roost and you daren’t be ill-prepared for the consultants’ rounds; it was all stiff starched sleeves and collars on inspection and quick-fire questions for student nurses.”

Although Margaret describes today’s hospital as more of a home-from-home, she does have fond memories of her time there, especially as local GPs looked after their own patients on-site and even carved the turkey when staff and residents celebrated Christmas day together.

Margaret had a short stay at the hospital after tripping and hurting her limbs and back, before regaining her strength and confidence to carry-on living independently at home.

She said: “The staff are incredibly kind and take the time to get to know you and what makes you tick. My eyesight is failing and I really appreciated it when people talked to me about the flora and fauna just outside my room’s window. To be able to rehabilitate in such a natural environment has helped me no end.

“Gardening was my passion growing up; it still is. We were lucky enough to have a rose garden, which was my mother’s pride and joy. I remember the day our lawn was dug-up to grow potatoes for the community during the war – such a vivid memory from what seems like a lifetime ago.”

Reflecting on more than four decades working in healthcare, Margaret describes her career as a calling that brought great joy to her life.

“I can honestly say I loved every aspect of caring for people, be it on an isolation ward, in theatre or in the private sector, where I worked after retiring from the NHS at 60.

“Nursing not only brought me professional happiness; it’s how I met my dear husband. I went from a privileged childhood at home with my family to being a student nurse in London.

“I met Fotios, a Greek portrait painter in later life, at a nurses’ social. We married and set-up home in Clapham, where he continued his career in the Merchant Navy and we raised our three children, before settling in Kent.”

After four weeks of rehab, which included physical therapy and exercises to improve her balance and mobility, Margaret was able to return home with a walker and care package in place to support her daily routine.

Margaret is back to enjoying pottering in her garden and spending time with her three children, whom she describes as ‘incredibly loving’, her six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.