Talk:Royal Earlswood Hospital

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Royal Earlswood Hospital was mainly staffed by migrant workers from Ireland, scotland and the commonwealth. Known as the cinderella of the profession the hospital was overcrowded and staff were poorly paid. When the the NHS took control a certain amount of order was introduced. Migrant workers from the commonwealth were recruited to work as nurses. I arrived at Royal Earlswood in 1973 to embark on the RNMH course as a student nurse. A qualification which was not valued by aspiring nurses. They tended to go for the more respected RGN or RMN course.

Mauritians, Irish , Scots, and the occasional Malaysian, Italian and Sri Lankans. The Scots and Irish ruled. The Mauritians who were mostly well educated and spoke good English worked alongside the irish and scots on the wards as nurses or care assistants. The other migrant workers worked in the kitchens or as domestics and maintenance.

Racism was rife and acceptable and part of the culture. Even the inmates joined in. Being called a paki, a paddy or a jock was part of the daily banter. If you were brown or dark skinned you were a paki irrespective of where you came from. If you were irish or a scot yo were part of the elite group. Even the English were in a minority.

Best years of my life were spent at Earlswood from 1974 to 1997. Happy memories.

Neil Ramdin