about the book
from boiler suit to blue suit
From Boiler Suit to Blue Suit charts the story of a boy from Newcastle upon Tyne who realised he was a square peg in a round hole. His decision to leave the factory and to enlist in the Royal Air Force in 1972 opened the door to an unexpected journey through his life. He trained to be a State Enrolled Nurse and qualified in 1974. His posting to RAF Hospital Cosford was where he met his wife Mary who was a trainee nurse. They married on the 13th of March 1975.
In 1981 he was posted to RAF Hospital Wroughton where he stayed until December 1995.
About the Author
Who Am I?
Bob Sanderson is 72 years old and lives with his wife in Swindon, UK. He was born and bred in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK; Bob left the Northeast to enlist in the Royal Air Force to train as a nurse. Bob initially trained as a State Enrolled Nurse (SEN) in 1974; in 1989 he qualified as a Registered Nurse (RN). Following 24 years in the Royal Air Force, he had a second career in the National Health Service, where Bob was the manager of the Swindon Walk-in Centre for 18 years. Bob finally retired from nursing in 2017. Bob has 4 grandchildren. In his spare time, Bob enjoys working his 3 allotments, he plays the cornet in a local village band, and he volunteers with St. John Ambulance, where he is the County Commissioner for Wiltshire.
testimonials
about the book
from boiler suit to
blue suit
During his time at RAF Hospital Wroughton, in September 1989, Bob completed his conversion course and became a Registered Nurse and specialised in Orthopaedic Nursing. He was sent on various detachments, including the First Gulf War in 1990. After retiring from the Royal Air Force, he had a second career within the National Health Service and obtained a BSc (Hons) as an Advanced Nurse Practitioner and Independent Prescriber. He retired in 2017 after 45 years in nursing; however, during the Covid pandemic, Bob re-registered on the Covid-19 Nursing Register for another 2 years to work with St. John Ambulance to train 175 vaccination volunteers to help with the national vaccination campaign, making a total of 47 years as a nurse.
Bob and Mary have two sons aged 49 and 46 years old; they have four grandchildren: two grandsons aged 9 and 27 and twin granddaughters aged 25. Bob and Mary will have been married for 50 years in March 2025. This book charts the ups and downs of the past 50 years of his life.