GRAAFF-REINET NEWS - Nearing the end of last year, Thandeka Majoka (65), a retired nurse residing in Graaff-Reinet, established the first ever 'retired nurses forum' in the Camdeboo region.
The idea behind the initiative was to get a group of retired nurses together, who will meet on a regular basis to share experiences and stories with one another, share ideas about the industry and pool their collective knowledge about nursing, to then, pass along to the younger generation.
Thandeka, who started her nursing career in August of 1975 and retired in November of 2015, has more than 40 years of nursing experience under her belt.
Through this group, Thandeka hopes to create an opportunity for retired nurses to reminisce about their years in nursing, to discuss the hardships they faced, the challenges they had to overcome and also to share with others the joy they found in being of service to others.
"When you retire, it doesn't have to mean the end of your involvement with nursing. I started the retired nurses' group hoping that it would grow and that people would see the value in joining the group. It's very nice for us to meet together but it's not just a social drop-in - it's not that kind of group - we focus on nursing issues and get a lot done. We talk about anything that's current in the nursing world, local issues and issues that affect us as retired nurses. We have a lot to offer," says Thandeka.
"It's definitely a two-way thing though - members can bring their concerns to the group, and often because a lot of us are members of other groups, committees and boards, we can raise the issues elsewhere too. We're a very lively and active group and people can benefit from coming to know what's going on in their local area. So far everyone has been very supportive of the group, and it's good to still feel part of nursing, we're not forgotten and we're out there and still an important part of the nursing industry."
The group, who have already successfully had their first meeting at Profcon in December last year, has scheduled their next meeting for 7 February. Thandeka invited anyone interested to join them.
"The younger generation of nurses can learn a lot from us, and we're eager to share with them our knowledge," concluded Thandeka.
Those wanting to find out more, can contact Thandeka at majokat8@gmail.com, 049 892 5854 or 072 442 1222.
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