Whartons made best of island time

ETHEL Wharton has always placed a bet on Melbourne Cup Day. Now, at 82 years of age, there is only one year she has ever missed.

The year was 1964 and Ethel was taking a different gamble aboard a ferry from Townsville to Palm Island, about to start what would become 20 years of service to the island community.

Her husband, Tom, had just received a three month contract as the electrician there and with three children aged between eight and four, Ethel thought their island stay would only be brief.

As a trained nurse, she took work as a Welfare Officer at the aged care centre and hostel for patients transitioning from hospital to home care and also gave nutritional and hygiene advice to both mothers and women in general.

For three years I did that. I think I wore out four pairs of shoes in the first year as you walked everywhere then; there was no transport, Ethel said.

When a new manager took over and decided Ethels home visits were unnecessary, she decided to find a new job. Palm Island Hospital was under the auspices of Townsville Hospital, so she phoned the latter and asked for a job.

They said, the Matron is leaving next year, do you want the job? I said, hold on now. This was November 1967. She said, she is going in January but I could start tomorrow, she said.

It was a 45-bed hospital in those days and I said I would see how I went with the three months. I took the job as Nursing Superintendent and stayed there for another 17 years.

When I first took over the Matrons job I thought, what have I done? I thought, well I will do this bit today and this bit tomorrow. Well, that got shot to pieces after the first day.

There were a couple of shootings before lunch and we had to send people to Townsville and it threw all my plans. And, I thought the only way I will get through this is to take it one day at a time.

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Whartons made best of island time