Four Dutiful Decades Of Care

A dedicated nurse who gave more than four decades of care to her patients was farewelled by Mackay Hospital and Health Service earlier this month.

Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery Julie Rampton started her nursing training at Maryborough Hospital in 1979 where she worked as a registered nurse before studying midwifery at the Royal Women’s Hospital.

She then returned to Maryborough Hospital as a midwife before moving into nurse educator roles followed by the position of Assistant Director of Nursing Education and then Director of Nursing.

She moved to Mackay to become the Nursing Director for Education and Research in 2007 and in 2009 became the acting District Director of Nursing Services before being permanently appointed to the role in May 2011. That position eventually became the Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery.

Julie has also stepped in to act as the Chief Executive for the health service and most recently has been the Executive Director of our COVID-19 response and taken responsibility for the roll out of vaccinations, testing and has led the MHHS Incident Management Team, steering it through a challenging time.

A spokesperson for Mackay Hospital and Health Service said Julie has always placed patients first and foremost and her caring nature will be missed.

In the 13 years Julie has been the Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery in Mackay she has overseen many achievements and changes in the nursing workforce.

These include working with JCU and CQU to establish the role of Students in Nursing.

“Our SINs are now an established and valuable part of our workforce and they support our ‘grow our own’ approach to staff recruitment and retention,” the spokesperson said.

Julie has always been passionate about education and ensuring nurses are able to keep their skills contemporary. One of the exciting changes she has seen is the introduction of the digital hospital and supporting the profession in Mackay to be an early adopter of this technology in Queensland.

“She has also been part of establishing the rural relievers program to provide graduate nurses the opportunity to work across rural hospitals, not only meeting workforce needs but giving our newly minted nurses a unique experience.”

She has witnessed the growth of midwifery as a profession and seen the introduction of two midwifery group practices, Maternally Yours staffed by graduate midwives and KemKem Yanga for women and babies who identify as Aboriginal and or Torres Strait Islander.

Julie is rightfully proud of the role she played in the redevelopment of Mackay Base Hospital, being a voice for the nursing workforce and supporting new models of care.

MHHS Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery Julie Rampton (left) retired this month after more than 40 years of service with Queensland Health. Photo supplied MHHS

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