Careers
LEARNING DISABILITY PRACTICE April 2009 | Volume 12 | Number 3 39
Face to face
Moira Donlon enjoyed general nursing but it left her wanting more
from her career: she found the fulfilment she was looking for in
learning disability nursing. During her career she has witnessed
the move from institutional care to the provision of services in
clients' homes. She spoke to Thelma Agnew about her career
and her current job as practice adviser, nursing, in Manchester
Moira Donlon loved her general nursing
training. `It gave me a great professional
grounding. I loved the systematic way of
dealing with disease and trauma. But it
wasn't complex enough for me � you don't
deal with the whole person. I couldn't see
myself doing it for the next 20 years.'
As a schoolgirl she had volunteered in a
club for people with learning disabilities,
and she realised that people with learning
disabilities could offer her the `more
complicated work' she craved. She moved
from her native Manchester to Liverpool
to train as a state registered nurse in
`subnormality'. `It was an eye-opening
experience. It was institutional care � the
hospitals were called "bins" because they
were bins. People were put in them, and
expected to live out their lives. Some of the
practices were not great.'
She did benefit from encountering some
inspirational ward managers during her
clinical placements: `You put in 110 per
cent to make sure that people on the
ward were well cared for and pain-free
and had as good a life as they could in
that environment.'
After qualifying in 1985 she worked
for a year in a hospital in Macclesfield
before returning to Manchester to take up
a sister's post in the community. `It was
quite a culture shock. I spent six months
trying to find out what a community nurse
did. I had to pretty much make it up, there
wasn't any guidance.' Gradually she worked
out that her role was to `facilitate' carers,
often parents, to provide hands-on care
and handle `challenging' situations. `I tried
to encourage them to look at health needs.
The attitude then was "Why do they need
this? People with learning disabilities don't
need blood tests or smear tests".'
A lot of the referrals to the community
service were for sexual health issues. `The
average person learns about sex from
people at school. For a person with learning
disabilities there are massive gaps. A lot of
the work was with vulnerable people.'
People who had been `de-skilled' by
years spent in institutions suddenly found
themselves living in an alien world.
Ms Donlon found the work really
satisfying, although sometimes the
satisfactions were not obvious. `You would
plod on for weeks and think you were
getting nowhere. And then you would recap
and think, "Well, actually I have achieved
a lot." In learning disabilities you do need
the character to keep on and on because
everything is so slow. It is minute steps.'
Learning disabilities nurses also need
`spirit', Ms Donlon says. `It is never an easy
job. We have to fight to get it on the agenda
with the people who hold the money. You
need a bit of spirit if you are going to do
this job � you need to advocate for people.'
In 1994, the learning disability service
for the whole of Manchester became a joint
partnership between the city council's adult
social care department and Manchester
Primary Care Trust (PCT). The move to joint
working was `frightening' but `necessary'.
As lead community nurse with the
Manchester Learning Disability Partnership
Ms Donlon expanded her role � liaising with
the PCT, for instance. She already had a
specialist practitioner certificate under her
belt but now she began equipping herself
to take on a leadership role.
In 2002 she was appointed to her current
position as practice adviser � nursing. She
supervises lead nurses and has a strategic
and leadership role. Now she is grappling
with the introduction of GP annual health
checks for people with learning disabilities.
Ms Donlon has come a long way since
the days when she wondered what a
community nurse did. Now she knows
exactly what she is doing � and she wants
to make a lasting difference. `I am a real
finisher. I will do my best to make sure that
things are done well so that they have a
self-sustaining life.'
Thelma Agnew is a freelance writer
`We have to fight to get learning disability on the
agenda with the people who hold the money. You
need a bit of spirit if you are going to do this job'
NeilO'Connor

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