Wellington Centenary.

NZNO's Wellington branch celebrated 100 years last month at a function in the city.

Members of the Wellington Private Nurses' Association, established by pioneering district nurse Annie Holgate in 1905, were concerned to protect the public from unsafe practitioners. According to NZNO professional services manager Joy Bickley Asher, the effectiveness of their early Lobbying is evident in the 1906 Private Hospitals Act, which included provision for the supervision of the standard of nursing in private hospitals.

Bickley Asher described the Wellington branch as assuming a Leadership rote when the national body was set up in 1909. "At the beginning, members were urged to have nothing to do with trade unionism but the history of the organisation shows it has always played a major role in seeking better conditions for nurses, from Lobbying for an eight-hour day to seeking a sound superannuation scheme for retired nurses."

Other speakers at the Wellington celebration included Whitireia Community Polytechnic Lecturer Kerri Arcus who spoke about Holgate's Legacy and Anne McDonald, author of a history of the Wellington branch from 1905-1989, who spoke of the branch's early activities, including the opening of the Nurses' Club, a residential establishment, in 1913.

The recipient of the inaugural Flora Cameron Award for Excellence in Practice, Capital and Coast District Health Board theatre nurse Mel Cooke spoke about her award-winning essay and her master's research paper, a Literature review Looking at the experiences of people who have experienced trauma and survived surgery. She paid tribute to her great-grandmother Agnes Ada Earl, who served overseas, along with 49 other New Zealand nurses, during World War 1, describing her as "sitting on my shoulder during my nursing career".

The setting up of an Auckland branch of the Private Nurses' Association followed in 1906, with Otago and Canterbury branches following in 1907 and 1908. The national organisation, forerunner of today's NZNO, was established in 1909. The organisation's journal, Kai Tioki Nursing New Zealand, celebrates 100 years of publication in 2008.