Lesley retires after fantastic 40-year career in nursing

Lesley retires after fantastic 40-year career in nursing

12 October 2022

A FORMER Downpatrick woman has retired from the South Eastern Trust after a near 40-year nursing career.

Lesley McKeown began her training in the Royal Victoria Hospital in 1983 and worked as a staff nurse within the burns and plastics unit for over five years. 

She then decided to undertake her midwifery training in 1990 and became a qualified midwife based at the Royal Victoria’s maternity ward.

In 1998 Lesley, who now lives in Hillsborough, started her health visiting training and by 2001, joined the South Eastern Trust as a health visitor working across the Down and Lisburn areas.

Throughout her career, Lesley has undertaken a range of roles, including health visitor, teacher practitioner and the community infant feeding lead for Public Health Nursing. She also worked as part of the Lisburn health visiting team.

A highlight of her career was achieving the UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative Gold Award, during the Covid-19 Pandemic. 

Lesley led the health trust’s community public health nursing team along with the community breastfeeding steering group, ensuring that every mother across the area received infant feeding support from their health visitor, with additional specialist support if required.

“Throughout my career, I worked with so many amazing people and alongside some wonderful teams,” she said.

“Nursing is so diverse and everyone I have worked with is so passionate and dedicated to their roles. Working with the health visiting teams in the South Eastern Trust was fabulous and I will still be doing bank shifts as and when I am needed, so I will still be able to see all my fabulous and dedicated colleagues.”

Lesley said she loved spending time catching up with her friends and revealed that just recently, her first grandchild was born who is a “wonderful new addition to our family”.

Paying tribute to Lesley, the health trust’s lead nurse in public health, Helen Leigh, said she was “instrumental in the health visiting service, achieving and maintaining the prestigious UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative Gold Award”.

Helen added: “Lesley has a real passion for breastfeeding. She will be greatly missed by all the staff and we wish her health and happiness to enjoy spending more time with her family, particularly her new grandchild.”