Nurse celebrates 24 years with Homeless Persons Program

Bolton Clarke’s Homeless Persons Program (HPP) is celebrating nurse Patricia (Trish) this International Nurses Day, recognising her 24 years of dedication to the program and her lifelong commitment to caring for others.

Trish’s passion for nursing spans more than four decades and extends well beyond Australia’s borders where she has honed her holistic approach to supporting people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

“Our work in the program involves engaging with people and helping them with what they want to let us help with first, like helping with a dental or optometrist appointment,” Trish says.

“I think it’s about equity of access and as a nurse for HPP, it’s about going with them and just advocating when they need someone to step forward or interpret what the doctors are saying.

“Working with our clients, you are drawing on all your training, your knowledge and background - your mental health, emergency, sometimes midwifery and just your skills in engaging with people.”

International Nurses Day, held annually on 12 May, marks the birth of Florence Nightingale and celebrates the vital role of nurses across our communities. Trish’s career is a testament to this legacy, with her experience gained in the most remote parts of the world.

Trish’s love for caring began in 1976 at St Vincent’s Hospital in Melbourne where she studied, gaining experience from the senior nurses.   

“When I first started nursing, I felt like I stood out like a sore thumb but in fact I fit in with everyone because we were all in uniform and the nurses above you mentored you so that was a great way to learn.

“After I completed my training in midwifery, I travelled to England for a bit before I linked in with Mother Theresa’s Sisters in India.

“I spent three months there, not as a tourist but as someone who could contribute in some way.”

She later worked in Papua New Guinea, where she lived and worked in villages on her own and then as part of a small team providing antenatal care to women.

After spending time overseas and working in remote Western Australian with the Royal Flying Doctors service, Trish returned to Melbourne and found her next calling.

“I saw an ad in the paper and they were wanting someone for the Homeless Persons Program so that’s how my time here started in 2002."

Now preparing for retirement, Trish is reflecting on more than two decades working with the homeless and the changes she has witnessed over time.

“You come to realise that it doesn’t take too many things to destabilise a person to end up in those circumstances.

“There are a lot of great services available now who are trying to improve people with low income access to fresh food and it’s important for us to know all those services and link our clients up with them.

“One positive thing is that most of our clients now have mobile phones so they are easier to connect with. We do see progress, it just takes time.”