Purple Hands : A Kiwi Nurse Midwife-s Response in Times of Crisis

What is life like for aid workers who gather from around the world to serve refugees who have fled their homes due to famine, political unrest, and disasters?

Kiwi nurse-midwife, Barbara Walker who spent 20 years working for international aid agencies shares her dramatic, heart-rending, and inspiring stories of the situations she faced and the people she sought to help.

From the Sakeo One Refugee Camp in Thailand, where she cared for those fleeing Pol Pots regime in Cambodia in a make-shift bamboo-framed field hospital, to her last placement in Mozambique that ended due to a death threat, Barbaras Christian faith gave her strength and kept her focussed.

We also learn of Barbaras early life in New Zealand, and her later call to ordained ministry as a chaplain when she returned after serving overseas.Barbara hopes that her story will inspire and encourage all who read it to think outside the square and seek to make a difference in the world in which we all live.

About the Author

Barbara Walker was called by God to become a missionary nurse at the early age of 13. Little did she know that she would end up working in some of the toughest places in the world over several years.

She has had a multitude of roles including nurse, midwife, eye surgeon, anaesthetist, dentist, car mechanic, vet, plumber, carpenter, health manager, and she is also an Anglican Priest.

Presently, Barbara is Lead Chaplain at the Hawkes Bay Soldiers Memorial Hospital in Hastings, New Zealand, and a Regional Chaplain Manager for the Interchurch Council for Hospital Chaplaincy.