Stories and memories that capture the experience of nursing in the bush, gathered by the inimitable Bill 'Swampy' Marsh, bestselling author of Great Australian Flying Doctor Stories and Great Australian Police Stories. I've been a trained nurse for almost sixty years now and I've never once gone to work thinking, I don't want to do this. In fact, I've always said how it's been a privilege to be a nurse in areas where there were no counsellors, no psychologists, nothing – just me. With hearts as big as the outback, rural and remote nurses are a dedicated and gutsy bunch who work selflessly to care for their communities, often in isolated and inhospitable conditions, with few resources but plenty of experience, courage and care. Outback nurses deal with it all: broken limbs, labour pains, snake bites, sunburnt backpackers, lost explorers, vaccinations, defibrillations – even the occasional crook cattle dog. One thing they are never short of is stories to tell. This memorable and eye-opening collection of real-life accounts from nurses in the Australian bush is by turns inspiring, poignant, heartbreaking and hilarious – and Swampy should know. It was while he was researching this book he had a near-fatal fall from a cliff in Kakadu, and experienced first-hand the skill and heroism of these outback nurses in extraordinary situations. Bill 'Swampy' Marsh is an award-winning writer and performer of stories, songs and plays. He spent most of his youth in rural south-western NSW and now lives in Adelaide. Swampy is one of ABC books' bestselling authors of Australian stories; this is his sixteenth book.

The work of a nurse is challenging enough, but when you add a remote location, the stakes are so much higher. Meet fifteen courageous people who prove that the outback runs on nurse power. There's Anna, who is on duty as the fury of Cyclone Yasi tears through inland Queensland; Maureen in outback New South Wales, who faces everything from a snakebite to a helicopter crash; Aggie, who overcomes her demons to help young people in the Kimberley; and Catherine, newly graduated and determined to make a difference in the Gulf Country she and her rodeo-riding husband call home. From some of the most remote places on the earth, these stories bring the outback to life – we witness the harshness and isolation as well as the camaraderie of life in small towns in the middle of nowhere. These intrepid nurses tend to life-threatening emergencies, manage everyday health care and even patch up the local pets. From Bidyadanga to Broken Hill, Mount Isa to Marree, these tales are by turns moving and inspiring, full of gutsy feats and classic outback spirit. Annabelle Brayley collected the stories that appeared in the bestselling Bush Nurses. 'Incredible stories of incredible people.' Blue's Country Magaine

It takes something special to be a bush nurse working in rural and remote Australia. These remarkable women patch people up and keep them alive while waiting for the doctor to arrive. They drive the ambulances, operate the clinics and deliver the babies. They are on call around the clock and there are no days off. They often make do with whatever is at hand while working in some of the most isolated places on the planet. Be they devastating family tragedies, close scrapes with bushfires or encounters with true larrikins of the outback, some stories will make your hair stand on end, others will make you laugh and some will make your cry. With tales from Birdsville to Bedourie, Oodnadatta to Uluru, you'll be amazed at the courage and resourcefulness of these nurses who have been the backbone of medical practice in remote Australia for more than a hundred years. 'This splendid book is filled with tales of innovative and resourceful nurses.' Sydney Morning Herald 'This collection is full of battle tales, with all their comedy, farce and sadness.'Weekend Australian 'Gripping and inspiring.' Ballarat Courier 'Funny, poignant and courageous.' Manly Daily

International humanitarian-aid nurse and New Zealander Andrew Cameron is the winner of the coveted Florence Nightingale Medal. In this gripping book he recounts his remarkable life nursing in some of the world's most dangerous and challenging locations, including South Sudan, Yemen, Sierra Leone and Afghanistan. He also details his nursing career in some of Australia's most remote settlements, where anything can be waiting at the end of a long and dusty outback road: a major road accident, a suicide, a broken arm, a stabbing. With mordant humour, wisdom and insight, he recounts the challenges, excitements, and huge rewards of a nursing life.

From the bestselling author of Bush Nurses and Nurses of the Outback comes this collection of compelling and moving stories of our heroic nurses in the Vietnam War Being a nurse always requires a cool head, a steady hand and an open heart. But if you're working in a war zone, the challenges are much harder. When Australia joined the Vietnam War, civilian and military nurses were there to save lives and comfort the wounded. With spirit and good humour, they worked hard and held strong, even though most of them were completely unprepared for the war before they landed in the middle of it. Working incredibly long hours and surrounded by chaos and turmoil, these brave nurses and medics were integral to our war effort. These fifteen stories show a side to the Vietnam War that has received little recognition but played an important part in shaping Australia's presence in the war. From flying with critically wounded Australian soldiers out of turbulent war zones, to being held at gunpoint, the compassion, courage and grace under fire in Our Vietnam Nurses will inspire and astound.

Outback Midwife is the story of Beth McRae’s 40 years as a midwife, from her terrifying first day witnessing a birth as a naïve student nurse to her training as a midwife – the days when the words ‘birth plan’ were unheard of and what women wanted was a long way from being part of any plan – to the outback. Beth's career of catching babies takes her from the city to the bush, bonding with people from all walks of life at one of the most important moments in their lives. But there was one more frontier she was determined to conquer. At a time when most people are thinking about slowing down, Beth decides to move to a remote Aboriginal community in Arnhem Land to embark on a whole other adventure.

Thea Hayes trained as a Nurse in Sydney in 1959. A year later she was catapulted out of the safety of her city life into the unknown world of the Outback. Thea knew nothing of the place she was soon to call home, Wave Hill Station in the Northern Territory, the second largest property in the world under one management. It covered four million acres! With nervous excitement, Thea accepted the job and flew to the Northern Territory where her life was about to change dramatically. This is a story of growing up, falling up in love and finding your home.