The Children's Nurse

This is the inspirational story of life as a nurse during the 1960s, 70s and 80s, most of which was spent at Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital.

Susan Macqueen was 12 years old when she accompanied her mum to see her friend Ms Fairweather, the matron at the local nursing home and from that day on she knew she wanted to be a nurse. A few years later, despite being told that her grades weren't good enough and having left school with only two O-Levels, Susan was accepted on the three-year nurses training course at Addenbooke's hospital in Cambridge. It wasn't long before Susan knew she wanted to work with children and set her sights on a job at Great Ormond Street. Thirty-five years later, on her third attempt, Susan has finally retired from that iconic hospital and is enjoying a more leisurely pace of life.

Hope, despair, laughter and tears, Susan's stories move the reader through the incredible stories that she was faced with on an every day basis.

Susan is a powerful storyteller. She's eloquent and intelligent and has a range of colourful anecdotes about children and life as a nurse to capture the reader's attention and pull on their heartstrings. She is 67 years old and after trying to retire three times in the past, she finally retired in March last year and is enjoying a more leisurely pace of life. She is the President of Great Ormond Street Nurses League.

Georgina Rodgers is an experienced journalist and ghost writer including current Sunday Times bestseller Tom Daley: My Story published by Penguin.

This Child First and Always [shoutline] It's 1969 and London is alive with change. Susan Macqueen is about to take on the job of a lifetime: becoming a nurse at Great Ormond Street Hospital. More than 40 years on, Susan never looked back. In this, her enchanting memoir, she recounts life at the hospital and the brave children and parents she met along the way. Filled with stories of hope, tragedy and laughter, The Children's Nurse is the extraordinary tale of a woman who dedicated herself to her work - never ending night shifts, intimidating Sisters and the children and their families.

This is the inspirational story of life as a nurse during the 1960s, 70s and 80s, most of which was spent at Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital.Susan Macqueen was 12 years old when she accompanied her mum to see her friend Ms Fairweather, the matron at the local nursing home and from that day on she knew she wanted to be a nurse. A few years later, despite being told that her grades weren't good enough and having left school with only two O-Levels, Susan was accepted on the three-year nurses training course at Addenbooke's hospital in Cambridge. It wasn't long before Susan knew she wanted to work with children and set her sights on a job at Great Ormond Street. Thirty-five years later, on her third attempt, Susan has finally retired from that iconic hospital and is enjoying a more leisurely pace of life.Hope, despair, laughter and tears, Susan's stories move the reader through the incredible stories that she was faced with on an every day basis.

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