The Grey Nurse

NursePhil, MSN, RN

I chose to work as an agency nurse to increase the range of my experience. I was able to work at a number of large metropolitan hospitals.

As I lived regionally I would work night duty or PM duty to make traveling easier. Working as an agency nurse necessitated orientation to each ward setting and often staff would go out of their way to make you aware of specific characteristics of their nursing setting.

At one hospital the lobby of nursing administration was adorned with old photos of previous nursing graduation groups. The original uniform of this hospital was a drab grey color with a grey and white veil. As you walked to Nursing Allocations you passed by these photos.

After reporting to Nursing Allocations I was sent to a specialist neurological ward, it was staffed by three-night staff. I was orientated to the environment by the charge nurse on arrival. I was introduced to the other nurse I was working with for the shift. The charge nurse then warned me about the presence of a Grey Nurse who was known to appear at night and help out. Apparently, she was a dedicated nurse who worked on that ward many years ago and she failed her final exam. The stress of failure was too much for her to bear and she committed suicide. I thought initially that this was some kind of a cruel joke but it was presented to me seriously as part of my orientation to the ward.

In the early hours of the morning, a frail aging patient rang the call bell and asked me to help her walk across the passage to the toilet. When she was safely on the toilet I pointed to the call bell and reminded her to call me when she needed to go back to bed. I then returned to the nursing desk.

After a longer time I became concerned as the patient had not called. I went back to the toilet to find the patient safely back in her bed. I said to her that she took a significant risk walking unaided back to bed. She replied, "Oh don't worry dear, the nurse in grey came and helped me back." A chill went down my spine. I told my colleagues who responded with an eerie silence and nods.

Years later I told this story to a group of nursing undergraduate students I was supervising to their amazement. One mature aged student took me aside later quite irate. She admonished me for telling such a foolish tale to young and impressionable students.

When I prepared the student assessments I liked to add a small personal encouragement to each student. On the above student nurse's assessment I wished her well and added the words, "... and may the Grey Nurse always be with you."

The Grey Nurse

About NursePhil, MSN, RN

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