Seven Sharp reporter Carolyn Robinson meets Robert Campbell, who is no ordinary orderly — he’s just notched up 48 years walking the wards.
At almost 70, he sets a fierce pace, taking the Taranaki Base Hospital's many stairs in pairs.
“Am I walking too fast?” he asked, as I tried to film him on the go.
Robert — or Robbie as he’s affectionately known — began his career as a 21-year-old. He still has the original letter offering him the orderly role.
"I was really thrilled,” said Robbie. “It's gone very fast. It doesn't really feel like 48 years for me."
Plenty has changed in almost half a century on the job.
"We used to wear ties; it was pretty hot wearing a tie in the summer.
"There used to be just one pager for the orderly team. Now, we’ve got many, many pagers amongst all of us. So, there’s no getting away from it."
'Extra pair of hands'
In the early days, the job description was vast.
"We used to do shaves before they went in for the op. With a razor and some powder. I was a bit of a barber, not too bad. Now the theatre orderly does that.”
Occasionally he was even called upon to help restrain patients. "Holding the patient down when they had to be sedated. Not very nice for the patient. [I’d] try to talk to them quietly and calm them down."
Orderlies even helped the ambulance crews from time to time, offering an extra pair of hands in an emergency.
"A young girl got stabbed in the main street of town, that was sad. She died. She was only about 14 or 15," he said.
"I try not to dwell on it when I leave work. I go do something else and take my mind off it. It’s hard sometimes."
He reckons he's met a good proportion of the region's population in his time. Some, he'll never forget.
"There was one young guy who was paralysed from the neck down. That was sad because he was a builder. He had built some lovely homes around Taranaki. He had a young wife and a couple of kiddies.
"I brought a small bottle of beer into the ward and had a drink with him. He had to drink out of the straw. I had to hold the cup for him," he said.
"He showed me these albums, with lovely photos of houses he’d built previously, really beautiful homes. That was a lovely moment, a very nice moment. He really appreciated it."
It’s not just the job description that’s changed. Robbie says he has, too.
"I'm not as shy as I used to be. I was quite shy when I started here. I hardly said boo."
Something that hasn’t changed, though, is the walking. "Back and forth, back and forth all day long. I am quite fit, yeah," said Robbie, who admits he also goes for walks at night to wind down.
'Life experiences'
In the past 48 years, Robbie has transported, comforted, and entertained countless people.
"Putting patients into bed, taking them to physio appointments in the wheelchair, doing the rubbish bags and the linen bags. It’s quite a mixture what we do," he said.
"I tell them who I am, and reassure them everything will be alright. It feels good afterwards. And we have a lot of fun, too, talking about rugby or the government.
"I've never ever dropped anyone, never tipped anyone out, never."
As he made his way through the hospital corridors, there was a steady chorus of “Hello Robbie!” to be heard. He admits he’s well-liked.
"The staff are fantastic, all of them. We’re just like a big happy family."
Colleague Dana Adams said Robbie’s done a marvellous job.
"All those life experiences he’s had and shared with us. He's awesome. He's a grandad figure, a dad figure. Always willing to help people."
His charges agree. A patient who was receiving treatment for kidney stones gave him a good report card while Robbie was wheeling him through the ward. "He's excellent, my word."
And despite notching up almost half a century, Robbie – who insists the patient always comes first — has no plans to quit.
"I'll see how my health goes, and if my health holds up I’ll keep going for as long as I can.
"Meeting new people, talking to other people and patients — it's just so interesting," he said.
"I’ve loved it. Loved every minute of it."
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