My wife, Lynne Ewin, who has died of cancer aged 67, cared passionately about people and developed an interest in public involvement in health and social care policy. She believed that it was the best way to improve services.
Brought up in Fulham, south-west London, Lynne was the daughter of Harry Butler, a company director, and his wife, Eileen (nee Wright), a sales assistant. Lynne went to the Marist Convent school in Fulham Road and had a high regard for the nuns who taught her, although she was not particularly religious.
In the late 1960s, she trained as a nurse at Hammersmith hospital. She then married Phil Henshaw, and moved to the Manchester area, where she became the sister-in-charge of the children’s burns unit at Booth Hall hospital in the late 70s. She and Phil had two daughters, Nicky and Emma, but their marriage ended in divorce. Lynne was also active in the Oldham West Labour party.
In a change of direction she moved into nurse education, having studied for a BA from the Open University. She worked in Salford, Leeds and finally London, where she joined Middlesex University in 1994, teaching social policy and health. During this period she undertook research in public participation in health and social care, also gaining an MPhil. She and I met in 1993 and married in 2007.
She loved the social side of her work and relished her involvement with the European student exchange programme, meeting and visiting lecturers and students in Finland and Italy.
Lynne retired in 2011 and we moved to Cheshire, but she continued to contribute as a member of the patient and public participation committee of the clinical commissioning group in Islington and with Cheshire West Healthwatch. She also volunteered with the Red Cross and Citizens Advice.
She enjoyed travelling, including taking rail trips, cruises and sailing. She had loved photography throughout her life and tried the patience of the family as she always had a camera almost, but not quite, at the ready for shots of her children. She took it up more seriously after retirement and was proud of winning a best newcomer award at the Chester Photographic Society. She then became a licentiate of the Royal Photographic Society with a portfolio themed on London.
Lynne is survived by me, Nicky and Emma, five grandchildren and a great-granddaughter.
