Frances (Fran) Meachin retired after 42 years of nursing in Intensive Care at Warrington Hospital, at 80 years young.

Fran, originally from Donegal in Southern Ireland, arrived in Warrington in 1960 at the age of 18 to undertake her Registered General Nurse training at Warrington Hospital. Following a brief time in general nursing Fran decided to do her midwifery training before studying psychiatric nursing, to see which area would be the best fit for her.

She returned to Warrington Hospital in 1980, after time in hospitals in Manchester and London and a career break when she had her daughters, Vanessa, and Hayley. Fran took up a post in Intensive Care and remained there – apart from a time spent shielding during the first waves of the pandemic following advice - until her recent retirement in March 2022.

“I hated having to shield; I understood why, but I wanted to be in work supporting my colleagues and our patients through this horrible time. I am not one for sitting round and wanted to be in the thick of it.”

Devoted to her nursing Fran saw it as her vocation and not just a job and explains why she stayed for 42 years in Intensive Care at the hospital.

“I didn’t see it as a job, I thoroughly enjoyed it and loved coming in to be with my work family and the bonus was I got paid for it. It also kept my brain active, and I like to be kept busy.”

Fran has been described by her colleagues as “extremely caring and compassionate to her patients and their families; this trait is also evident in her relationships with colleagues, always taking an interest in their lives and families.”

Fran is looking forward to her retirement spending time with her family but plans to do voluntary work. Fran has some advice for any new nursing recruit starting out on their nursing career,

“Enjoy it and make the most of it. I felt that I learnt something new every day and make sure that you ask questions if you’re not sure on something. Take your time to learn and grow in the role, but most of all enjoy it! “Nursing is the best career ever, you can’t beat the job satisfaction and I highly recommend a career in nursing at Warrington Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit, I can’t think of anywhere better to work.”