Growing up in Tantawangalo meant Ailsa Wild lived down a dirt road spent most of her childhood in creeks and at the base of the Tantawangalo mountain.
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Although she has now swapped 140 acres for busy Melbourne streets and a two bedroom apartment, she often sighs a breath of fresh air when she returns to the Bega Valley. And sets her four year old son Jack to work digging weeds with his grandfather.
It was in Melbourne however where the idea came for her new book The Care Factor: A Pandemic Nurse's Story came about. Writing under metropolitan pandemic conditions were tough though and her publisher encouraged her to have the book written by October of 2020.
With a four-year-old son to care for during weeks where they would only be allowed out of their house for an hours' worth of exercise and with face-to-face contact, Ailsa juggled being a dinosaur or meerkat for her son and an author.
During that time she was able to write a book on her friend Simone Sheridan (Sim), a nurse working at Royal Melbourne Hospital which at a point had 40% of Australian's COVID in-patients.
"Some people talked about lockdown as a time to pause and reflect and it was opposite of that for me."
When her partner would be in charge of the childcare duties, Ailsa got to work writing her new book. Although at the start of the pandemic she had been working on a spooky horror themed book for children [prior to her new book she had mostly published children's books and young adult fiction], she found herself unable to pursue that considering what was happening in the world at the time.
As a nurse Sim had an extremely diverse role within the health care system both pre and post COVID. Her role prior to the pandemic was to assist patients whose sexual health had changed due to instances like surgery, injuries or medication.
She also worked closely on cases of domestic violence and abuse which had risen significantly within families since the start of the pandemic.
In addition to her roles with patients, she was also an educator in these fields and was in charge of teaching other nursing staff about how to care for patients of these specific cases.
During COVID-19 Sim's role also encompassed supporting frontline and health sector staff members who had tested positive for COVID or were a close contact and were in isolation.
According to Ailsa there were 750 staff members required to self-isolate during the height of the pandemic.
This meant they were unable to even breathe the same air as their children and family. She assisted in cases like debriefing with parents on how to play games in the backyard with their children whilst self-isolating from a separate room.
She was also a bedside nurse throughout and the book also addresses how hospital staff managed their patients while wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) and the often changing rules around PPE requirements.
"The book is really personal and really raw. It's very telling of those intimate details of our friendship during the lockdown and her experience in the lockdown around the idea of care. She would often break down to me on the phone detailing her experiences."
- Ailsa Wild
The response to the book, which was published on March 3, 2021, has been overwhelmingly positive said Ailsa.
She received an influx of personal messages about the book with people being really moved by it.
"It had people in floods of tears," she said.
One of the patients described in the book was a pregnant ICU patient with twins who ended up on a ventilator during the pandemic. She spoke at a book launch held at the hospital and thanked Ailsa for the book with her twins in her arms and spoke of the importance of community that happens when people come together to help others survive.
Like many nurses, Sim was modest about her role and impact and about a book having been written about her.
"She felt like she didn't deserve to have a book written about her, but we realised that the book was about things that are really important to her and a vehicle for teaching others about those things."
Ailsa Wild will be returning to the Valley with Sim in May for the Tathra HeadLand Writers Festival from May 14 to 16.
"Sim grew up in Western Australia and then moved to Melbourne so she's never been to the South Coast of NSW before.
"We are thinking about camping in the backyard at my brother's home in Candelo.
"I love any excuse to come home, I love coming back for Bega Valley events."
Ailsa and Sim will be in conversation with Gabbie Stroud at HeadLand Writers Festival on Saturday 15 May from 10-11am. Tickets cost $12.
She will also be running a workshop for kids at the Bega Valley Library based on her The Naughtiest Pixie books collection. Kids will be creating a pixie house and look at storytelling through craft. Tickets cost $5.