Inside a Wooloowin aged care home near Wavell Heights, two nurses from different generations are sharing stories that show how dramatically healthcare has changed over the past 60 years. One remembers treating patients during the final years of the polio epidemic, while the other now works with electronic medical records and ongoing digital training in modern aged care.
International Nurses Day is held annually on May 12.
The contrast between the experiences of former nurse Marjorie Davidson and clinical nurse Swasti Gurung has become part of daily life at Carinity Clifford House in Wooloowin, where both women have spent time caring for older Australians in different stages of their careers.
Davidson began nursing in 1959, entering hospitals at a time when disposable medical equipment did not exist and infectious disease wards still treated tuberculosis and meningitis patients.
She recalled working with iron lungs during the final years of the polio epidemic and sterilising reusable needles over boiling water heated by wood stoves. Hospital workers also manually cleaned large copper tubs used for infected linen during afternoon shifts.
From remote clinics to Brisbane’s northside
After starting her career in Victoria, Davidson spent 13 years nursing in remote parts of Papua New Guinea, caring for patients suffering from malaria, chest infections and severe skin diseases.
Medical conditions in isolated areas were difficult, with limited supplies and long distances between communities. Crocodiles and heavy mosquito populations were common around the clinics where she worked.
Many of the tools younger nurses rely on today were unavailable at the time.
Now retired and living in Wooloowin, Davidson has watched nursing shift from handwritten paperwork and reusable equipment to computer systems and advanced medical technology.
A new generation enters aged care
For Gurung, nursing followed a very different path.
She started her career in Nepal before moving to Australia and retraining for aged care work in Brisbane. Before joining the Wooloowin facility, she worked in hospital wards assisting with endoscopy and colonoscopy procedures.
Gurung now works in a healthcare system built around digital records, regular technology updates and lifting equipment designed to improve safety for both staff and residents.
She said aged care nursing created opportunities to build lasting relationships with older residents while hearing stories from earlier generations.
That connection between past and present has become one of the defining parts of life inside the Wooloowin facility.
International Nurses Day shines light on changing profession
Healthcare workers across Australia are preparing to recognise International Nurses Day this month, with aged care staff in Brisbane’s north reflecting on how quickly the profession has evolved within a single generation.
At the Wooloowin home, stories from nurses trained decades apart continue to cross paths each day — from tropical clinics using sharpened needles to modern facilities relying on digital healthcare systems.
Published 12-May-2026
